


Same Face Syndrome

by MugetsuPipefox



Series: Sea-Salt Family [9]
Category: Kingdom Hearts (Video Games)
Genre: Arguments, Gen, Identity Crises, Keyblade Training, Sort Of, Yen Sid can fist fight me in a kmart parking lot and that's all I'll say on that, making friends with yourself, mark of mastery exams, not re:mind compliant, post kh3, questionable ice cream
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-23
Updated: 2020-10-23
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:48:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 28,037
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27162049
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MugetsuPipefox/pseuds/MugetsuPipefox
Summary: Figuring out who you are becomes a lot more difficult when you're forced to share a face with a large portion of your friends
Relationships: Everyone & Everyone, Isa & Lea & Roxas & Xion (Kingdom Hearts), Naminé & Roxas & Riku & Ven, Roxas & Sora (Kingdom Hearts), Roxas & Ventus (Kingdom Hearts), Xion & Lea & Kairi & Sora
Series: Sea-Salt Family [9]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1289027
Comments: 246
Kudos: 57
Collections: Sea-Salt Family Fics (KH)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I've had this one partially written for almost as long as this series has existed. It's very different from that first draft now though. Hope it lives up to expectations!
> 
> This fic is fully written, and I'll be uploading all 11 chapters right now. So if you're reading this and you're missing something, give me like 10 minutes to catch up and hit refresh :)
> 
> Shoutout to Boop for always helping me Ily

Despite having once seen it with his own eyes, Roxas' memories of Castle Oblivion were largely not his own. From Sora he'd received an image of endless grass fields and a crossroad, glimpses of white walls, and hooded black-coated figures. From his own visit, only a looming brownstone castle backdropped by a gloomy, overcast sky. He'd gone inside, he knew, but he'd passed out just in from the doorway, so he figured no one could blame him for not remembering anything more than that.

The world Xion's Corridor opened out into was unrecognisable. There was still grass, but it was neatly trimmed and framing an ornate courtyard that had definitely not been there before. The castle itself was white instead of brown, and the sky was a bright and cheery blue. Roxas traced the path of the clouds lazily drifting overhead.

"Are we in the right place?"

The familiar blocky shape of the gummiship peeked over the cliff edge – parked further down the mountain. There was some comfort in knowing that if they were in the wrong place, at least they weren't the only ones.

"Yes, it's right," Xion said from his left. She'd been here before, and he trusted her judgement, but the doubt lingered.

"It looks... different." He'd been surprised when he'd found out that Aqua, Terra, and Ven were from Castle Oblivion, but he figured someone must have lived there originally before the Organization found it. The way it was now felt more fitting for them (and Xion and Naminé, who'd both been 'born' here), but that didn't make him any less confused.

"Aqua explained it after she went to get Ven," Axel said. "Something about transforming it into Castle Oblivion to stop it from falling to darkness, and changing it back into Land of Departure after she got out of the Realm of Darkness."

A bit like Hollow Bastion and Radiant Garden, then. But, wait, "How did turning it into Castle Oblivion stop it from falling to darkness?" And for that matter, how did she stop it from continuing to fall when she changed it back?

Axel scratched the back of his head awkwardly, and glanced at Isa. Isa said nothing, expression neutral. "I dunno; I'm still new at this whole Keyblade thing," he shrugged. "You'll have to ask her."

"It will have to wait until after the exam," Isa said pointedly. "We're already late enough as it is."

They'd failed to account for the different time zones; they'd thought they had time for the clock tower, but Land of Departure was an hour ahead of Twilight Town. Still, Roxas would rather be late than give up even one day of going up to the clock tower now that they'd gotten back into the routine. He hadn't been brave enough to have any ice cream yet, but he'd managed to sit on the ledge with Axel and Isa (and Xion, when she'd found the courage, too).

Axel waved off Isa's comment. "Relax, we're fashionably late."

"Fashionably late?" Xion asked.

"Not too early so that we look overeager, and not late enough to be rude."

Roxas frowned at him. "Isn't it better to be on time?"

"Yes," Isa said, directly contradicting Axel's easy "Nah." Isa glared at him. Roxas got the feeling it was another one of those 'You're teaching the children bad habits' things. He and Xion usually just ignored them.

"I hope they haven't started without us," Xion hurried up the steps towards the castle entrance.

Roxas took them two at a time, bounding along beside her. "I bet they waited." They knew they were coming, after all. Why wouldn't they wait?

The instructions on the invitation had just said to follow the hallway down to the end, then take a right. From there, the throne room where they were supposed to meet was 'impossible to miss'.

Xion and Roxas entered ahead of Axel and Isa, drawn by echoing voices. Sure enough, as they rounded the corner, the throne room came into view. From the looks of things, everyone else was already there. Sora and Terra were standing together with Aqua near the dais, while Ven, Riku, Kairi, Mickey, Donald, and Goofy stood around them in a loose semi-circle. They all turned to watch them enter. Roxas' attention lingered on Ven, as it often did. Ven stared back.

"Look who finally decided to show up," Terra teased.

"Yeah, yeah, we're late," Axel dropped a hand on Roxas' shoulder, shifting so that his view of Ven was obscured. Roxas uncurled the fists he hadn't realised he'd formed. "If it was really a problem you could've called."

Kairi crossed her arms, but her expression was more amused than annoyed. "We did."

"Wait, really?" Axel released Roxas in favour of patting himself down. "Huh. Must've left my phone at home."

Xion quickly pulled out her own, face turning red as she saw the missed call lit up on the screen. "Mine was on silent."

"What's your excuse?" Riku asked Roxas. "I tried yours twice."

Roxas' phone was present and accounted for, with no missed calls or unread messages. "I blocked your number."

Riku pursed his lips like he was physically holding himself back from saying something he would regret. Roxas felt a rush of petty satisfaction.

"You could have called Isa," Xion pointed out. Isa always answered when they called, even when he was at work. Which was weird because he was usually mad about it.

Sora scuffed his shoe against the polished floor uncomfortably. "We didn't know what time he finished work. Didn't want to accidentally interrupt anything."

Isa made his 'internal sigh' face. "For future reference, my shifts end at 1pm Twilight Town time," he said, but it was clear that he was not expecting any of them to remember.

Axel moved over to the closest wall, leaning against it. Isa, Roxas, and Xion trailed after him.

"Does it really matter? We're here now." He clapped. "Let's get this show on the road!"

"Actually," Sora admitted, "we're still waiting on Naminé."

Roxas blinked, quickly scanning the room. Sure enough, there was no sign of her amongst everyone else. He reached into his pocket for his gummiphone. Maybe being late was sort of expected of them, but Naminé was never tardy. "Has anyone tried calling her?"

"She called me," Kairi said. "She said she had something to talk about with Ienzo and she'd be over right after."

Something with Ienzo? She hadn't mentioned that when they'd left Radiant Garden a few hours ago. Roxas turned to Xion, but she was equally clueless. He hoped it wasn't anything bad.

"And you complain about us," Axel rolled his eyes.

"You just make it so easy," Kairi laughed.

Naminé arrived less than a minute later, out of breath and sketchbook clutched in her arms. She still had her backpack slung over one shoulder.

"I'm here," she panted, spotting Roxas and Xion and making a beeline to join them. She let her bag fall to the floor with a relieved sigh. "Sorry I'm late."

"Everything okay?" Roxas asked. She was still hugging her sketchbook.

"Yes, sorry."

Aqua shot her a sympathetic smile and then gave her full attention to Sora and Terra, who immediately stood to attention. The spectators fell into silence, eager for the exam to begin.

"Terra, Sora, I know that I didn't train either of you," she started. "And I know that you've both attempted the Mark of Mastery exam before. But I want you to know that I couldn't be more proud to be standing here right now, with the knowledge that no matter what outcome we see today, you are both skilled Keyblade wielders who have worked incredibly hard to be here. I can't think of two people more deserving of the title of Master."

They both averted their gazes awkwardly at the praise, but Aqua's smile only grew stronger.

"Are you ready to begin?"

"Yes, Master Aqua."

She inclined her head. "There is only one task to complete." She flicked a ribbon out from where it was hidden in her sleeve and tied it at her hip. Stormfall appeared in her hand, and with it she activated a barrier to separate them from the spectators. "Retrieve the ribbon."

There was only one ribbon. Did that mean that only one of them would be able to pass?

"Exam begin."

Neither of them moved. Aqua watched them with shrewd eyes, evidently not going to let them snatch it from her without a fight. Sora whispered something and Terra whirled on him in surprise, hissing something back equally quietly. They had what looked like a heated argument for a few long seconds before apparently coming to an agreement.

"What's that about?" Roxas frowned, as Sora and Terra turned back to Aqua and summoned their Keyblades.

Xion shrugged. "If there's only one ribbon, maybe they were trying to work out who should get it?"

Oh, yeah, that made sense. Sora wouldn't take it for himself if it meant Terra would miss out, and Terra probably felt the same way. Roxas couldn't fathom what kind of agreement they could have come to, but at least they weren't fighting each other anymore.

Terra was the first to move. He charged forward with Ends of the Earth held high. Aqua braced for the attack and easily parried when he made to strike. Terra didn't let up, though, coming back around for another blow and forcing Aqua to keep her eyes on him if she didn't want to be completely overpowered. Momentarily forgotten, Sora darted around the edge of the barrier, circling behind.

"Stop!" he cried, pointing Kingdom Key at her exposed back.

Aqua dove out of the way, and the stop spell struck Terra mid-swing. Sora skidded to a halt in front of him with a wince. He cast esuna and only just managed to avoid Ends of the Earth's continuing swing.

"You okay?"

"Fine," Terra straightened. The two of them turned to where Aqua was once again waiting for them.

They dove in together this time, paying more attention to what each other were doing, but Aqua more than made up for her lack of physical strength with agility and magic. From what Roxas could follow, neither of them were making any attempts for the ribbon – both completely focused on trying to catch her with status spells, or knocking her down, in Terra's case.

"You'll have to be faster than that!" she taunted, cartwheeling out of the way of another spell.

They chased her around the enclosed circle of the barrier, always one step behind. Terra's frustration was starting to show in an increased weight to his swings, and even Sora was becoming reckless in his casting.

"We need a new strategy," Terra huffed when Aqua once again avoided a sneak attack.

She smiled at them teasingly.

Sora tugged him down to whisper in his ear and Terra nodded.

Sora was the first off again, going around the perimeter of the barrier like he had earlier. Aqua kept an eye on him, but he gave no indication of doing anything other than running in big circles.

"Magnet!" Terra forced her attention back to him. He was too slow; she swiftly raised up a barrier to protect herself.

Sora seized the opportunity her distraction had created. He came to a sudden halt and pointed Kingdom Key in her direction. A volley of light shot off from the tip, forcing Aqua to dodge.

Terra had been waiting for this, though. When he was within just a few feet of her, he thrust his Keyblade straight up into the air.

"Blackout!"

It hit. Aqua stumbled back, one hand reaching up to rub uselessly at her eyes. Terra and Sora both immediately sprinted towards her.

"Esuna!" she cried, just in time to smack Stormfall across the backs of their reaching hands and jump out of range again.

Terra lunged after her and suddenly disappeared in a shroud of darkness. Roxas watched the stain slink across the floor until it was right under her. Aqua was unprepared for his reappearance at her feet, and her hasty attempt to block sent her crashing down onto her back, Stormfall sliding out of reach.

Sora was at Terra's side in an instant and when Terra hesitated, Sora grabbed him by the wrist and forced him to grab the ribbon at the same time as him.

"Exam complete," Aqua puffed, pushing herself back to her feet. The barrier faded.

Sora and Terra stood side by side, ribbon held between them. Terra clenched his jaw and slowly let go, leaving it dangling in Sora's hand. He turned to him, surprised, but Terra kept his gaze resolutely on the floor between them and Aqua. He was strangely upset for someone who just achieved his goal.

"With only one ribbon, it wasn't in your best interest to work together," Aqua said. "But you recognised that to get it, you would have to cooperate and I am very proud of both of you for going to the length of grabbing it together. It shows how much you both value your connections with others more than self-gain."

Sora nodded. For him this was more than obvious.

Terra remained statuesque.

"It is for this reason that I'm sure no one would disagree that you have both shown the mark of mastery," she beamed at them. "Congratulations, Master Terra and Master Sora."

Terra's head shot up, his surprise in direct contrast to Sora's excited grin. Sora glanced back over his shoulder as a cheer rose up, so excited that Roxas could feel it through their bond.

"But I used the darkness," Terra argued, the only one not happy.

Aqua smiled knowingly. "You did."

"Then why-?"

"If there's one thing we've learned, it's that darkness is not a bad thing in itself." She placed a hand over his heart and then one over her own. "You have darkness in your heart, as I have in mine. We all do, with one or two exceptions," she winked at Kairi. "It's what you do with that darkness that matters, Terra. You used darkness, yes, but more importantly you controlled it."

Terra shook his head, taking a step back out of her reach. "I didn't. I didn't control it. It surfaced on its own because I was frustrated."

"But you kept it from causing harm. You did control it, even if you didn't call on it. That will come with practice; don't think that just because you're a Master now there aren't still things you can learn."

He still didn't believe her. Roxas could see it on his face and in the tense way he held himself. Aqua saw it too.

She put her hands on her hips, daring him to defy her. "Would you say Riku isn't worthy of being a Master because he uses darkness?"

"What? No!"

"What about Lea, Roxas, and Xion? Are they lesser wielders for their use of darkness?"

"Of course not!"

"So what makes you so special that you get to be the only exception to the rule?"

"The Master-"

"Was wrong," Aqua finished and immediately closed her eyes, expression pained. She took a deep, steadying breath. The exhale was shaky. "Master Eraqus was wrong about darkness. He taught us the importance of balance, and then contradicted himself by prohibiting the use of it. Pretending there is no darkness in us is not a sign strength. It's denial, and it will only lead you down a path where the darkness controls you."

Ven broke away from the crowd to stand between them. He rested his head against Aqua's shoulder and she lifted a hand to settle in his hair.

"You're not weak, Terra," she held out her other hand to him. "Your heart is stronger than you know. And you're worthy of the title Master, whether you like it or not."

Terra sagged under the weight of her words. He took her hand and let himself be dragged in for a hug. Suddenly uncomfortable, Roxas averted his gaze to Sora, who had, at some point, been hauled up onto Riku and Kairi's shoulders to be paraded around. The height difference made it look very uncomfortable.

"When they said exam, this is really not what I was expecting," Axel drew his attention.

"What were you expecting?" Naminé asked.

"I dunno," he shrugged. "Essays? Long answer questions? Multiple choice?"

Isa cracked a smile. "Question 1: What is a Keyblade?"

Axel pulled a face and crossed his arms with a huff. "I haven't done any studying since I was fifteen and I'm not about to start now."

"You didn't study when you were fifteen, either."

"I did too!"

"Copying my homework doesn't count as studying."

"Yes it does! I read the answers!" Axel leaned back against the wall. "Whatever. It doesn't matter. This kind of exam is more my style. I could pass." He grinned down at Roxas and Xion. "What do you think? Master Lea has a nice ring to it."

Roxas frowned at him. "I'm not calling you that."

"Master Axel."

"No."

* * *

They had a celebratory dinner in the dining room. It had been a last-minute development; Sora had made a comment about being starving, which had then led to him, Xion, and Isa disappearing into the kitchen for several hours. No one had been allowed in. Lea had tried. His nose still hurt from being smacked with a wooden spoon.

They'd come out with one of Xion's famous All You Can Eat buffets, except this time instead of being entirely over the top, it was probably about the right amount for the number of people crammed into the dining room.

The blissful silence had lasted only as long as it took most of them to finish their firsts. Which was about five minutes tops.

"So, hey," Lea slid into the seat beside Aqua the instant Ven got up to get seconds. "I wanted to ask you something."

Aqua set down her fork and wiped her mouth on a napkin. She was still on her first serving because she didn't eat like she was dying. Probably an only child. "Of course. What is it?"

He'd been thinking about it since Isa had mentioned it, and it had become painfully obvious that he wasn't improving well on his own. Not like he'd done when he and Kairi had been training together. There were limitations now that he didn't have before, but they wouldn't be hard to work around.

"I was wondering whether you'd be willing to take me on as a student."

Aqua hadn't been expecting this, if the subtle widening of her eyes was any indication. "You want to be my apprentice?"

"I guess?" If that's what they were calling it.

She shifted in her seat so she was facing him directly. "Are you just wanting to improve your skills, or are you hoping to become a Master?"

Lea glanced sidelong at Roxas and Xion, who were laughing at something Kairi had said. "I want to be a Master."

Aqua followed his gaze. "May I ask why?"

"It's not easy to explain, but I suppose you could say I want to have the power to protect the things I couldn't before."

Her gaze softened and he immediately knew she understood. "Being a Master doesn't guarantee that. There are other ways to protect."

Not ways that he had any confidence in. Ten years of perfecting the use of chakrams and they hadn't been able to do anything to save any of them when it counted. Ever since he first summoned Flame Liberator, it had been more than up to the task. Maybe he didn't bring back the kids, but if he hadn't had it, he wouldn't have been there to help them afterwards. And it had helped him bring back Isa. That was close enough to a perfect success rate as far as he was concerned.

"I've come this far," he told her. "Might as well keep going."

"This weekend," Aqua said. "I'll have Terra help me put together an exercise as a sort of introduction to what you can expect from training here. After that, if you're still up for it, I'll happily take you on as an apprentice."

That sounded good to him. He wouldn't be able to stay at the Land of Departure for training, but day trips would be easy enough to manage. It'd be like going back to school again, except not terrible.

"Deal," he stuck out a hand, and Aqua readily returned the gesture.


	2. Chapter 2

Xion followed Roxas out of the Corridor into the back alley of Twilight Town. They still had their bags from tutoring, but they'd promised to spend the afternoon with Hayner, Pence, and Olette today and they were already running late. They'd invited Naminé to join them, but she'd declined. Whatever she was working on with Ienzo, it was taking up all of her free time. And no matter how much Xion pestered her for answers, she remained tight-lipped. Something about not wanting to get hopes up when she didn't know if it was going to work. Whatever that meant.

"We should go get some ice cream as an apology for being late," Roxas said, waving a hand to dismiss the Corridor as soon as Xion stepped out onto solid pavement.

They'd been exploring all the other flavours the store had to offer lately, with the exception of sea-salt. Even despite evenings on the clock tower and Axel and Isa regularly going with sea-salt, she and Roxas hadn't been brave enough to have it yet. She personally had taken a liking to strawberry. Roxas favoured salted caramel. Xion suspected the salt reminded him of sea-salt.

"But then we'd be even later," she pointed out, though she agreed that it was a good idea.

"True."

They turned to head down to the Usual Spot and froze when they spotted Hayner, Pence, and Olette staring at them from the corner.

Dread settled in Xion's gut. Isa had warned them not to let the locals see the Corridors. Had they seen? What would happen if they had? She glanced at Roxas for a prompt on what to do now, but he was as startled as her. Except, instead of the anxiety she was suddenly feeling, he was more surprised that they were there than what they might have seen.

"How long have you been standing there?" he asked, clutching his chest as if to try and calm himself.

Hayner, Pence, and Olette shared a silent conversation.

"We came out to find you guys about the same time your portal opened," Hayner confessed.

They'd seen. They'd seen the Corridor. Would they tell people? Would they get 'run out' of Twilight Town like Isa had warned?

"Could've said something," Roxas scowled at him, going over to join them. "You nearly gave me a heart attack!"

Xion remained where she was. They didn't look upset or freaked out. And hadn't Roxas once said that they wouldn't be bothered by it? Maybe it wasn't such a big deal?

"You? What about me?" Hayner countered. "Seeing that spooky portal turn up in the middle of the alley! I thought one of those weirdos was back!"

"Weirdos?"

"In the black coats," Pence explained. "They were turning up at the mansion a lot before you guys moved here."

"I nearly kicked one in the face!"

"Nearly being the key word," Olette snickered.

Roxas blinked slowly, like he was having trouble processing what he was hearing – a feeling Xion could more than identify with. "You... nearly kicked one. In the face."

Hayner was far too pleased with himself. "Yep!" he punched the air. "He got in a lucky shot before I could get him but man if he hadn't I would've flattened him!"

Roxas held his gaze for all of five seconds before breaking down into laughter. Admittedly, the thought of Hayner trying to kick anyone from Organization XIII – new or old – was hilarious. But her anxiety lingered, growing worse the more she heard, and stopped any laughter before it could begin. They knew about Organization XIII. Thought they were weirdos. What would they think if they knew the truth about her and Roxas? About the things they'd done?

Olette broke away from the other three to join her and rested a hand on her arm. "It's okay," she said quietly. "We already know."

Xion tensed. "Know?"

Roxas stopped laughing.

"Pretty much everything," Olette shrugged. "About you guys, and Axel. And Organization XIII."

"Well, not everything," Pence confessed guiltily. "But enough."

"What does that mean?" Roxas rejoined Xion, hovering at her side. He was wary.

Hayner glanced over his shoulder towards the Sandlot. "Maybe we shouldn't talk about this here." At his gesture, Pence and Olette followed him back towards the Usual Spot. After a second or two of hesitation, Roxas and Xion joined them.

The three of them had huddled together on the crates. There was something nervous about the way they were avoiding eye contact. Unable to relax, Xion remained standing just in from the doorway. Roxas hovered at her side, fake confidence on his face.

"The last week of summer vacation, you were acting really weird," Hayner began, bolstered by Pence and Olette's nods of reassurance. "And then we saw a portal and Olette saw your coat, Xion, and we realised you guys had been part of the cult." He swung his leg out, letting his heel thump against the wood. "We were worried that you were caught up in something bad, so we... did a little digging."

Well, that all sounded reasonable. If she'd been in their shoes, she probably would have been worried too. Except, "What's a cult?"

"It's..." Pence faltered. "It's like an exclusive club where everyone shares the same beliefs, but it's exclusive in a bad way. You can't leave, even if you want to, and they trick you into believing really harmful ideas."

Oh. Was the Organization a cult then? Leaving had never been an option – Xion had run away enough times to know that. And they'd never gotten to choose what they did for missions, or even if they wanted to do missions at all. Xion had never questioned any of it. That was just the way things were. It was like knowing that there were other worlds and that they didn't have hearts. It was all just a fact of life.

Except it hadn't been, had it?

Roxas reached for her hand and Xion squeezed back.

"We went to the Old Mansion," Hayner continued when neither of them said anything else. "And Pence hacked into the computer in the basement."

Roxas' grip tightened.

"There were a bunch of reports on it that pretty much told us everything."

Xion hadn't even known there was a computer in the mansion's basement. She knew that Naminé, Riku, and DiZ had been using the mansion as their base while they were trying to help Sora. Had there really been reports left behind? She'd never met DiZ in person back then but from what she'd heard, he hadn't been the type to just leave information lying around where anyone could find it.

Olette bit her lip, studying their faces for a reaction. "We know you're Nobodies."

Xion averted her gaze. She wasn't though, was she? And neither were Isa or Axel now.

"I'm the only Nobody," Roxas said. He wasn't looking at them anymore either. "Axel, Isa, and Xion aren't."

They wanted to ask. She could see it on their faces. But they didn't. Why? They were being cautious about how they were saying what they knew, but they still knew. Why not just ask?

"Axel and Isa went back to being people," Xion told them slowly, correctly guessing what they were thinking. The tension was nearly suffocating.

"If you have a question, just ask," Roxas frowned, no doubt picking up on the same thing Xion had. He didn't sound like he wanted them to ask though.

"We promised to butt-out," Olette shrank down, fiddling with the hem of her shorts.

"Promised who?"

"Axel," she confessed. "He caught us snooping around and let us ask one question each in exchange for not digging into it anymore."

Axel had known? Why hadn't he told them? Why was their past such a big secret anyway? Hayner, Pence, and Olette were more scared of their reaction than what they'd learned. And they were their friends. Why bother with all the cover stories if they didn't have to?

"Not that we want to go digging around in your business!" Pence quickly added. "Axel reassured us that everything is fine now, so it doesn't really matter anymore."

Roxas was tense beside her, his grip near crushing. He'd always taken secrets hard. "Well it's not digging if we give you the answers freely, right?"

It sort of was, if Xion was being honest. She didn't see the harm in it though, no matter what Isa said, even if Roxas was only suggesting it to be petty.

Hayner, Pence, and Olette clearly didn't agree.

"We don't want to pry," Olette said. "We were just worried, is all."

"It's not a secret," Roxas insisted.

Xion eyed him worriedly. She hadn't seen him this mad in a long time. It was bubbling under the surface but he was trying not to take it out on them. It wasn't them he was mad at. She had a strong suspicion she knew who the real target was. Maybe she could find a way to calm him down before they got home.

She couldn't let them fall apart again.

Hayner, Pence, and Olette weren't oblivious. They could read his anger as easily as Xion could. There was guilt written across all their faces. But they could also see that Roxas wasn't going to let them not ask, no matter how uncomfortable any of them were.

"What did you mean when you said Axel and Isa went back to being people?" Pence started uncomfortably.

Roxas turned to scowl at the wall. The question was directed at Xion, but he was the one who answered. "They were recompleted when they faded."

That was right; Axel had faded too, hadn't he? Xion had already been gone by then. She'd never really thought about what must have happened between then and when she saw him again in the Badlands. Had Roxas been there? Or had Axel died alone?

"Recompleted?"

"When a person's Nobody and Heartless are both destroyed, they fuse back into the person they used to be," Xion explained. They'd gotten lucky with Isa the second time. The first time, his heart had probably already become part of Kingdom Hearts but it was sheer luck that his second Heartless had been destroyed when Saïx was.

Olette turned to Roxas. "But you're still a Nobody because otherwise you'd be stuck with Sora, right?"

"I have my own heart now." His voice was hard. "I came from Sora but I'm not him."

"Damn right, you're not," Hayner declared. "Sora's great and all, but he's not you."

Roxas' gaze snapped up to him, surprised. Some of the anger softened into something fonder.

"There's just one more thing," Olette hedged. "If you're Sora's Nobody, and Naminé is Kairi's, then who are you, Xion?"

"I'm..." Who was she? A replica with a face from stolen memories. Less real than a Nobody, but still a person with a heart.

"She's Xion," Roxas said, daring anyone to defy him.

Yes. She was Xion. Roxas and Axel and Isa's best friend. She was herself first and foremost, even if her foundations had come from other people.

"Sorry, that's not what I meant," Olette clarified before Xion could say anything. "We know who you are – you're our friend, obviously – but I meant more, how do you tie into all this?"

That was an easier question to answer.

"I'm a replica," she said to her feet. "They made me to copy Roxas' Keyblade in case something went wrong and they needed me instead. I wasn't supposed to become a person."

Pence leaned back, thoughtful. "So how come you look like Kairi then?"

"Sora had lost his memories and I ended up absorbing the ones of Kairi through Roxas. So I... became her? Or, at least, a reflection of the version of her in those memories."

"You didn't," Roxas insisted fiercely. "You're not Kairi. You never were."

But she had been for a little while, hadn't she? She had Kairi's face and her hairstyle was almost exactly like Kairi's had been back then. It was a different colour, but that was possibly because one of those memories that she'd first absorbed had been a confusion of Kairi and Yuffie. Xion wasn't Kairi any more than she was Naminé but she had been at one point, in the same way that she'd also been Sora at the end.

"I'm not Kairi now," she reassured him. "I'm Xion."

Xion, whose foundation was Kairi, but who had grown to be someone else entirely. Xion, who had defied every expectation her puppeteers had had for her.

But in the end, she'd still played her part. She'd worn someone else's face and stolen someone else's memories, and then someone had pointed her in the right direction and she'd done exactly what she'd been told. The only difference was she'd let herself believe that she'd been pulling her own strings. Because she'd felt it was the right thing to do. To help Sora and save Roxas.

If she had to go back and do it all over again, would she do it differently? Would she be someone else if she'd known early on and stopped things before they could get so out of hand? How much of the her that existed now was still based on someone else?

Where did Kairi and Sora end, and Xion begin?

* * *

Lea was reclined across the couch when the front door banged open. The noise had Isa looking up from his laptop where he was sitting in the adjacent armchair. It was definitely Roxas and Xion, but the loud bang was a little concerning. There were a few more sounds of unwarranted violence – shoes being tossed more than a little carelessly, if he had to take a guess – and Xion's quiet but desperate voice. A second later, the two of them came charging into the living room, Roxas coiled like a knife taped to a spring and Xion very obviously trying to stop him.

Lea slowly sat up. "What's going on?" he asked warily.

"You said we weren't keeping secrets anymore," Roxas accused. The expression on his face was exactly the way it had been when he'd found out about everything Axel had hid from him at the end. Alarm bells went off in Lea's head.

"We're not," he said slowly. Because they weren't. They weren't going down that path again. Not in a million years.

But this only made Roxas angrier. "So, what, did you just forget to tell us about Hayner, Pence, and Olette finding out?!"

Isa closed his laptop. Xion went to hover anxiously beside him.

"What are you talking about?" Lea asked.

"They told us about what happened in the mansion," Roxas seethed. "We had to hear it from them, because I guess your promises don't mean anything!"

"Roxas!" Xion snapped. She moved to stand between him and Lea, but by that point it didn't matter. Roxas stormed off, the slamming of the front door indicating that he'd left the house again.

Lea stared after him, frozen in place.

He honestly had barely even thought about that time in the mansion's basement after the fact. He'd warned them off and made them swear, and that was that. It hadn't really been a secret, it just wasn't something he felt the kids needed to be bothered about. Knowing would only upset them.

But... that was exactly his reasoning for not telling Roxas anything back in the Organization, wasn't it? Protection, or so he'd claimed. But who was he really trying to protect? Back then, it hadn't completely been Roxas. This time it was – him and Xion – but his track record wasn't exactly great.

He'd promised to stop hiding things and what had he done? He'd hidden things. He'd promised to bring them back, but it hadn't been him who'd done that in the end.

Lea dropped back onto the couch with his head in his hands. Roxas had a point. His promises really were worthless, huh?

Xion sighed. He felt the couch dip as she sat down beside him, but didn't move, even when she pressed up against him. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"Does it matter?" Lea huffed a laugh. He needed to go and find Roxas. Apologise, first and foremost. He hadn't had that chance last time. He wouldn't make that mistake again.

Ha. That sounded familiar. Even his promises to himself were worthless.

"I'm sorry for not telling you, Xion," he lifted his head to face her. It was important that she understand he hadn't meant to hurt them. "I didn't mean for it to be a secret. It just never felt like something you needed to know."

Her expression was understanding, even as it was disappointed. "I'm not mad."

"You're allowed to be."

"I'm not," she insisted. "But it would have been nice to have some warning. I panicked a little when they saw the Corridor."

So that was how this had all started. He had wondered if he wasn't the only one going around breaking promises.

She clasped her hands in her lap. "I think you'd better go talk to Roxas."

Yeah, he thought so too.

Xion watched him leave and she had a strong suspicion that there'd be no clock tower that evening. Their first missed day since they'd started.

"Are you really alright?" Isa asked once he'd gone.

Xion didn't look at him. She was disappointed, more than anything. Besides, what right did she have to be mad when she'd done the same thing, not so long ago?

"I'm fine," she lied.


	3. Chapter 3

Of course Riku was here. Because Roxas was never allowed to have a break. He'd come this far, though, and he wasn't going to let Riku get in the way now. Roxas crossed the sandy beach of the play island to where Sora and Riku were sitting side-by-side on the pier. There was an open package of hot chips between them, obviously from the mainland. Neither of them had noticed him yet, not even Sora, who would be able to feel him through their connection. The temptation to kick Riku square in the back so he fell into the water was overwhelming.

Sora ruined his chance before he could get it. Roxas had barely started down the pier when he turned with a bright smile, and Riku naturally followed the movement. Damn.

"Roxas! What are you doing here?" Sora visibly tried to find a way to make room for him to join them but it wasn't going to happen. Unless Riku decided to leave, but Roxas' luck had never been that great.

Hmm. Maybe he could still kick him off, even without the element of surprise.

Deciding against it (Sora would get upset), he sat down on the side as far from Riku as he could and reached over to pilfer some chips. This wasn't a conversation he wanted to have with Riku, but then again Riku had made plenty of bad decisions. Maybe he'd have some wisdom or something.

Sora's excitement faded into concern when Roxas didn't return his excited greeting. "You okay?"

"What do you do when Riku breaks a promise?" he asked.

Riku glared at him and Roxas made sure to maintain eye contact when he went to swipe more chips.

"Riku doesn't break promises," Sora frowned. Of course he'd say that.

"I know he's sitting right there but you don't have to lie for him, Sora."

"It's true!"

"Okay," Roxas relented, entirely unconvinced. Riku's caged expression did not help Sora's argument.

"Did something happen?" Riku asked pointedly. Sora glanced between them, interested.

"None of your business!" Roxas snapped. Maybe he should have kicked Riku anyway. It wouldn't have gotten rid of him but at least it would have been funny.

Sora hummed. "Well, if Riku did ever break a promise, it'd be for a good reason. I'd hear him out and if he was sorry I'd forgive him."

Roxas considered this, and then turned to Riku. "You don't deserve him."

Riku didn't grace him with a response. A sure enough sign that he already knew. Good.

Sora twisted so he and Roxas were sitting side by side and knocked their knees together. "If there's something you want to talk about, I'll listen."

Talking about it with Sora was kind of the reason he'd come here but now that it came time to actually talk about it, he was having second thoughts. He shouldn't burden Sora with his problems.

"We can go for a walk?" Sora suggested.

"Yeah, okay."

They left Riku on the pier. He didn't seem particularly bothered by it, but Roxas took vindictive satisfaction in ruining his evening plans.

For a while, they walked along the sand in silence. Sora didn't push for details and Roxas took comfort in the presence of someone who had never once lied to him or hidden anything from him or done anything at all to hurt him, deliberately or otherwise. Sora was too good. Riku wasn't the only one who didn't deserve him.

"Axel broke a promise," Roxas finally confessed when they'd nearly finished a complete loop of the island.

Sora didn't say anything for a moment, kicking the sand with his shoe. "Was it a big promise or a little promise?"

Roxas turned to him. "What do you mean?"

"Was it something really important or something small like promising to do the dishes and then not doing them?"

"It was really important." Secrets had ruined everything once. Didn't that matter to him?

"Did he explain why?" Sora waved at Riku as they passed the pier again. Riku waved back. The chips were probably cold by now, assuming Riku hadn't eaten them all.

Roxas thought back on the conversation. If it could be called that. "No," he realised. But that was only because Roxas hadn't given him the chance to. "I left before he could."

Sora turned back to him. "Do you want to know why?"

"Yes." Axel was his best friend. He did awful things sometimes and hurt him, but he was still the first friend Roxas had ever made, and the thought of losing him was terrifying. The fact that he could break such an important promise so easily was equally so, because it implied that maybe Axel didn't feel the same way.

"Then ask him."

"What if there isn't a good reason?" Roxas stopped, staring out at the ocean lapping at their feet.

"I guess it depends," Sora said.

"On what?"

"On whether he's sorry," he shrugged. "Or whether you want to forgive him. You're allowed to not forgive someone who hurts you."

He already knew that. There was more than one person he refused to ever forgive. Axel wasn't one of them.

"And what if... what if he doesn't forgive me?" he asked quietly. He'd probably deserve it. "I said something I didn't mean because I knew it would hurt him."

Sora nudged him with his shoulder. "Do you really think he wouldn't forgive you if you apologised?"

No. Axel wasn't the type to hold a grudge over something like that. But it wasn't anger that Roxas was afraid of. Axel pretended to be put-together, but they all knew that he was a lot more anxious than he let on. Which just made this whole thing make even less sense.

"Do you know about paopu fruit?" Sora suddenly asked.

Roxas automatically looked to the tree on the raised section of the island ahead of them. The paopu was important to Sora. "Yeah?"

"You should take one with you when you go back. I dunno if the legend is true but I like to believe it is." He grinned. "And Aqua told me that she made charms shaped like it for her and Terra and Ven, and they found their way back to each other. If you share one, you'll always be a part of each other's lives, arguments or no."

It was a nice thought, even if Roxas wasn't sure he believed it. Sea-salt ice cream had felt like that for him and look where that had gotten them.

Then again, they'd found their way back too, hadn't they?

* * *

Axel hadn't been able to find Roxas. He'd come back a few hours later, defeated, and Xion heard him pacing up and down the hallway in agitation. She'd excused herself to her room after he'd gone, not in the mood for company, and she wasn't particularly keen on leaving just yet. She was still upset. She just needed time.

Axel continued to pace.

Several minutes later, his footsteps faded down the other end and she heard a door close. Then what must have been Isa coming up the stairs.

Xion picked her face out of her pillow and reached for her gummiphone. She'd sent a message to Roxas earlier. He still hadn't responded. She hoped he was okay.

There was a message from Sora, though.

_S: U OK? Rox told me what happene_

He must have gone to the Islands then. She was glad he wasn't by himself at least.

_X: I'm okay_

She was. She was fine. Just upset about the argument, that was all.

_S: U sure?_

_X: Yes. I just don't like fighting_

Axel had told them once, when they'd talked about what they'd do after completing Kingdom Hearts, that people who lived together argued over stupid stuff. At the time she'd been excited for it because it would be something that they did together. Now she was having second thoughts. Then again, this wasn't really the 'stupid stuff' he'd meant.

_S: ppl breaknig promises hurts. Ur aloud to be upset, Xion_

A drop of water splashed onto the screen, obscuring the last message. Where had that...? Oh. She was crying. She quickly wiped her eyes on the back of her hand.

It didn't feel fair. She'd done a lot worse than hiding one little thing, so why was she allowed to be upset when she'd gotten away with doing the same thing?

She rolled off her bed, leaving her phone on the pillow, and eased open her door. The hallway was clear. She quickly darted down to the bathroom.

Her reflection in the mirror had eyes red with tears. Xion angrily splashed water on her face. She shouldn't be crying. She had no right to cry.

When she looked up again, there was an extra person in the mirror. From the looks of things he'd only been walking past, but now that he was caught, she watched him turn to fully stand in the doorway. Xion quickly ducked her head but she knew he'd already seen her face through the mirror.

She braced herself for a comment or a question. He didn't say anything. After half a minute of excruciating silence, Xion chanced a peek over her shoulder.

Isa wasn't looking at her. His glare was fixed on the bathmat like it had personally wronged him. But he also hadn't left. Did he need to use the bathroom?

"Sorry," she made a break for the hallway, forced to squeeze past him.

"Xion," he stopped her. A moment later, a hand awkwardly landed on her shoulder. She couldn't look at him. "I'm... here for you, if you wish to talk."

Xion let out a breath. She wished Saïx had been more like Isa. "I'm okay."

"It's alright to be upset."

"I'm not upset," she sniffled.

"I am."

That caught her attention. Isa still wasn't looking at her. His head was tilted down so his hair hid his face like a curtain. "Do you want to talk?"

"Hmm." He let his hand drop. "Would you care for some hot chocolate?"

She didn't really feel like it, but she nodded anyway, suddenly not wanting to be alone. Or maybe not wanting Isa to be alone.

She followed him down to the kitchen and grabbed the powder and marshmallows from the pantry while he set three mugs down on the counter. One for Axel too.

"It was inconsiderate to not warn us that our cover had been blown," Isa said as he set a saucepan of milk on the stove. "I understand that keeping it a secret hadn't been his intention but that doesn't change that he did."

Xion dug a teaspoon through the powder in one of the mugs.

"What upsets me is that in hiding it, he put all of us at risk. I know that they're your friends and are unlikely to spread the information around but I also do not know them, and Lea does not share your familiarity with them. It wasn't just his secret to keep." His spoon scraped along the bottom of the saucepan as he stirred. "And that in forcing you to find out the way you did, he hurt you and Roxas in particular."

Xion didn't say anything. When Isa came over with the milk, she stepped back out of the way and readied the marshmallows.

"I'm not upset about not having warning about our cover being blown," she confessed quietly. Their reasoning for keeping secrets had been the same from the beginning.

Isa passed her a mug. "What is it that bothers you?"

She chased her marshmallows around the surface. "He promised no more secrets." Secrets had divided all of them and torn them apart. She'd hidden what she'd learned and what she was doing. Axel had done the same. And they'd done it for the same reasons but that didn't mean they'd been right to. "I'm... I'm upset because we were going to find out eventually. He must've known that, right?"

Isa took a sip from his own mug. "Lea was never very good at thinking things through." He nudged the third one towards her. "Perhaps you should tell him so that next time he'll remember it."

Xion took it and made to head back out to the stairs.

"Isa?" she paused on the threshold.

"Yes?"

"Thank you."

Isa turned away from her, hiding his face behind the rim of his mug. "It's only hot chocolate."

She didn't call him out on the blatant avoidance.

Axel's door was closed when she reached it. She kicked it gently with her foot, unable to free a hand.

"If you're here to lecture me, Isa, you can save your breath," came Axel's reply.

Xion carefully pushed down the handle with her elbow and let herself in without comment. The room was dark with the curtains drawn but not dark enough that she couldn't easily spot Axel lying face-down on his bed. A picture of misery. She stopped beside him and debated whether or not to risk balancing his mug on the back of his head.

"Isa-" he pushed himself up on his elbows, and froze comically when he realised it wasn't Isa standing there. "Xion."

"I'm upset with you," she said, and passed him the mug.

He took it on reflex.

She sat down on the edge, forcing him to scoot over to accommodate her.

Axel sat up properly and hunched over his hot chocolate. "I really didn't mean for it to be a secret."

"I know," she watched her marshmallows bob. "But it feels like you did." She forced herself to hold his gaze. "It really hurt us when we found out that you'd gone behind our backs like that. Especially when we promised not to do that anymore."

"I'm sorry, Xion."

She shifted so that she was leaning against his side. "I'll forgive you because I know you didn't mean it," she rested her head on his shoulder. "But I think I'll be upset for a while."

"Yeah," he sighed.

She took her first sip of hot chocolate, enjoying the extra sweetness of the melting marshmallows. "You have to make sure you apologise to Isa too, okay? And Roxas, when he gets home."

Axel huffed a humourless laugh. "If he gets home."

"He will." She was sure of it. He was mad, but not that mad.

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because he loves you as much as I do. Got it memorised?"

Axel rested his head on top of hers, mug cradled in his lap still untouched. "I love you guys, too."

She already knew that. That was the only reason why he'd ever hidden anything from them, after all.

* * *

It was past midnight in Twilight Town by the time Roxas made it back. He'd left Sora and Riku to their evening hours ago, and had since been busy in a quiet corner of the Bistro's kitchen.

He'd left his phone on silent the entire time and when he bothered to check it as he made his way down Sunset Terrace, it was to find a grand total of fifteen missed calls and twenty-three messages. Most of them were from Axel but there were a couple from Xion, one from Isa, and one from Sora informing him that he'd told Axel that he was okay. Roxas didn't bother reading any of the other messages, instead tucking the phone back into his pocket and readjusting his grip on the plastic bag in his hand.

There was still a light on – the lamp in the living room. Isa was sitting alone on the couch, visibly struggling to stay awake.

Their eyes locked.

"Hi," Roxas said quietly.

Isa pushed himself up to his feet and made his way over to where Roxas was awkwardly loitering in the doorway. "Are you alright?"

Probably not, but he was better than he'd been earlier. "Why are you still up?" he asked instead.

"I opted to stay behind in case you returned before they found you."

They? "Where's Axel?"

"He and Xion are still out looking for you." Isa stooped down to grab his phone where it rested on the coffee table. "I'll let them know you're back."

Roxas watched him fiddle with it. They'd gone out to look for him? They'd been out this long?! He hadn't... he hadn't run away, he'd just needed some time to calm down. He shifted his grip on the plastic bag. Suddenly it didn't feel like enough.

Isa hadn't even hung up when a Corridor tore open right by where Roxas was standing. He quickly took a few steps back to avoid being trampled, but in the end it didn't save him from a full-body collision.

"Where have you been?!" Axel nearly crushed him. From what little Roxas could see past his shoulder, Xion was with him. "Why didn't you answer your phone? I called like a hundred times!"

Roxas remained stiff, the one hand not holding onto the bag trapped against his side. "I'm sorry," he said into Axel's shoulder, closing his eyes and leaning heavily against him. "I didn't mean what I said. Your promises don't mean nothing."

Axel made a noise in his throat that Roxas couldn't decipher. "I haven't been able to keep any of them."

"That's not true." It wasn't. And he hated that he'd even implied it was. "If you and Xion hadn't been there, I wouldn't have had a reason to wake up." Maybe he still would have anyway, for Sora, but it wasn't the same. "And we promised to meet again in the next life." This was their next life. Their second chance.

He pried his arm free so he could wrap it around Axel's back.

"You're just not good at being honest."

Axel pulled back enough that they could look each other in the eye. "I'm sorry for not telling you," he said. "I didn't think about what would happen when you found out. I just didn't want you to have to worry about it."

"You broke your promise."

"Yeah," Axel admitted.

Sora had been right. Roxas didn't know why that still surprised him. Sora was usually right about these sorts of things. "I'm still mad."

"I know."

"But I'll forgive you anyway." The other option didn't even bare thinking about. "You don't have to tell us everything but you can't hide the important stuff. You have to trust us." That was really what it came down to. He knew Axel trusted them but it was hard to remember that when he hid things like this. "I'm tired of being lied to, Axel."

"Yeah," Axel agreed, voice thick. "I know I'm not great at the whole being honest thing, but I do trust you. I'll do better. This won't happen again."

Roxas smiled wryly. "That a promise?"

"Call it a guarantee."

Xion decided she'd waited long enough. She neatly inserted herself between them and Roxas let himself been drawn into a second hug.

"Please don't disappear like that again," she whispered.

"Sorry," he returned. He hadn't meant to worry them.

"What's in the bag?" she asked when she released him.

Roxas brought it up to his chest, cradling it with one hand while he reached in with the other. They were probably slightly melted now but he hoped they'd still be edible.

"Sora gave me an idea," he said, pulling out four bars of yellow ice cream.

"Ice cream?"

"Paopu ice cream," he corrected. "Sora said Mr McDuck used to make ice cream, so I got him to help me." He held them out in offering, suddenly embarrassed. "If... If you want to share them with me?"

Xion smiled at him affectionately and took a bar. "Paopu fruit symbolise an eternal connection, right?"

"Yeah." He looked to Axel hopefully to find his eyes were wet.

"Gimme one of those," he said, voice thick with emotion. "It's not gonna take a magic fruit to keep us together, but I won't say no to a little extra luck."

There were only two left. Roxas turned to Isa.

"You don't have to," he said awkwardly. Isa was their friend and part of their family now, but this was a little different from sharing regular ice cream. Paopu might just be a legend but it was one Roxas wouldn't take lightly. And he didn't expect Isa to, either.

Isa's gaze was unreadable, at least to Roxas. He studied him for a long moment, before looking to Xion and then Axel. After a long moment, he sighed, something hard shedding from his shoulders on the exhale and a soft smile that Roxas rarely ever saw directed at anyone except Axel was left in its wake. He took one of the ice creams.

"It seems I'm stuck with the three of you either way," he said, not making eye contact. "I might as well get some ice cream out of it."

Axel swept him up into a hug that he was clearly not prepared for. "Damn right you're stuck with us."

"Like a terminal disease."

"Rude!"

Roxas failed to suppress a laugh and Xion was quick to join in. The four of them stood together in a loose circle, ice creams starting to melt in their hands, and suddenly Roxas found he couldn't imagine it any other way. It almost felt like it had always been like this. Or maybe that it was always supposed to be like this. The four of them together, against all odds. The Roxas of two years ago never would have believed it.

Axel discreetly raised a hand to wipe his eyes and took a bite out of his ice cream. The rest of them were quick to follow.

Roxas watched them all carefully, the way their expressions suddenly strained and their attempts to hide it. He figured he'd better spare them.

"Wow this is awful." As it turned out, paopu was not a great ice cream flavour. He'd at least had warning in the taste-test back at the Bistro.

Xion bravely took a second bite. "It's fine," she said, eyes watering.

"Tastes like friendship," Axel copied her. He looked like he was in pain.

"If this is what friendship tastes like I'm going to reconsider," Isa said.

Axel pointed his ice cream at him threateningly. "You'll eat it and like it!"

Maybe that was the point of it, though. A magical fruit that tastes terrible, so you have to really want to be together forever to endure eating it.

Well, Roxas thought as he forced another bite down, he'd endure a thousand of these things if it meant holding on to them.


	4. Chapter 4

The morning carried with it its own tension. Apologies and ice cream shared in the middle of the night had been a promise to stay together no matter what, but even forgiveness didn't erase the damage immediately. It was present in Isa, who subtly searched Xion's face when they passed each other by in the early hours – him on his way to work, and her finally giving up on sleep. It was there again in the stilted way she and Roxas had said goodbye to Axel on their way to Radiant Garden, and in how she felt his eyes linger on them longer than he normally would.

There was a different kind of tension within Xion herself. The questions that had been spinning around her head since their conversation with Hayner, Pence, and Olette had only resurfaced once things had calmed down, chasing away any chance of sleep. She hadn't been able to look at her reflection again.

Naminé was sitting out on the castle steps when they arrived, her sketchbook on her lap and a box of crayons between her and Riku.

Xion loved Naminé. She loved her gentleness and her compassion. She loved the many ways they could relate to each other. Her presence was usually a comfort. Today it strained her further.

She and Roxas paused on a lower step, for different reasons.

"What are you doing here?" Roxas' glare was impressive for such an early hour. Or maybe because of it. She didn't think he'd gotten much sleep either.

Riku was well practiced in ignoring the hostility in his tone. There were times when Xion was sure he'd retaliate, but he always tried to keep calm no matter what Roxas did to him. If it was an attempt to win Roxas over, though, it only ever backfired.

"I needed his help with something," Naminé answered for him. She set her crayon – a grey one - down in the box and flipped the sketchbook closed. Xion couldn't see what she'd drawn from where she was standing but she suspected whatever it was, it had something to do with the project she and Ienzo were working on. But why would she need Riku's help?

Roxas kept his attention fixed on Riku. "Don't you have school or something?"

"Yeah," Riku rose from his seat and stretched his arms above his head. "Kairi's covering for me but I should get going before I'm any later." He offered a hand to help Naminé up. "You get everything you need?"

"Yes," she allowed herself to be pulled to her feet. "Thank you, Riku."

"Let me know if there's anything else." He started down the steps towards them, pausing when he came up level with Roxas. "Everything okay now?" he asked, quiet enough that Xion suspected she wasn't supposed to hear.

Roxas didn't answer him. He continued his march up towards the castle, making sure to slam his shoulder into Riku's on the way.

"Sorry," Xion apologised as she watched him go.

Riku sighed. "It's not your fault."

It was though. At least partially. If she'd been open with Roxas about what she and Riku had been doing, maybe he wouldn't hate Riku so much. It wasn't fair that Riku had to bear such a grudge when he'd only ever been trying to do the right thing too.

Xion stared at her boots.

"I'd better get going," Riku said after a moment. "I'll see you guys on the weekend, right?"

The training weekend was coming up fast. "Right."

She watched Riku retreat further down. She wasn't sure whether he'd come by Corridor or gummiship but she suspected the latter; he was more open to using darkness than he'd been when Xion had first met him but he still avoided unnecessary use of it.

Normally she'd call out to him to say hi to Sora and Kairi for her. Today, she couldn't get the words out.

* * *

The training weekend didn't technically start until Saturday morning but the invitation that was sent out had them gathering at Land of Departure on Friday night. They were each given their own rooms for the weekend in the same long hallway that housed Aqua, Terra, and Ven's bedrooms. It would be a long while before any of them went to bed, though, opting instead to spend time with each other without any sort of pretence.

Naminé had accepted the invitation, even though she wouldn't be able to join in with the training. She didn't have a Keyblade and the extent of her fighting ability was limited to a few spells and manipulating others into protecting her. There was really no reason for her to be there at all but she hadn't been able to get a single word out before she was being herded off by Kairi and Ven to play some kind of video game called Dance Dance Revolution that Terra had set up in one of the sitting rooms.

Naminé sat on the couch with her legs curled under her. Her sketchbook sat open on her lap, as it now did in every second of spare time she could find. An unfinished drawing of familiar white walls stared up at her. In front of her, Terra was very close to beating Kairi's high score.

"What are you drawing?" Ven asked, peering over her shoulder.

Naminé clutched the edges of the paper. "It's nothing at the moment," she replied softly. "But hopefully it will be soon." She just had to keep trying. The links of the chain were still there. She just needed to follow them.

She looked up at Ven's face – the one he shared with three other people, though Naminé had only ever met two of them.

"I don't really get it," Ven smiled apologetically, "but it looks good."

How did he feel about it? If she could go back, there were things Naminé would change. She wondered if that was true for him as well. She refused to believe it was too late to fix things. Maybe the same could be said for him.

"Ven, can I ask you something?"

* * *

First thing after breakfast on Saturday morning, Terra and Aqua had them all gather together in the throne room, where the Mark of Mastery exam had been held the last time they'd visited. As it was specifically Keyblade training, Isa and Naminé wouldn't be able to join in and were sitting together on two of the three thrones up on the dais. Roxas felt a little bad for them, even though he knew Isa was even less interested in Keyblades than Roxas was.

No one had been forewarned what they'd be doing over the next two days. Roxas had never had anything that could be considered proper Keyblade training (the early 'missions' he'd been sent on with the other members of the Organization had pointed him in the right direction, but they'd sort of already expected him to know what he was doing). He had no idea what to expect, and Terra's call for them to partner up didn't help answer it. Did that mean they were going to be working with their partners specifically? Would they have to fight each other?

Roxas hadn't had a chance to see them all in a fight. He knew Kairi and Axel were still relatively new to the Keyblade, and that Sora was definitely deserving of the title Master. Riku was weaker than Sora but made up for it by playing dirty. And he could only guess at Ven's skill level.

But if Roxas was going to pick someone closest to his level...

Xion locked eyes with him from where she was standing with Kairi. They'd learned to use the Keyblade together, more or less, and the last time they'd fought they'd been pretty evenly matched.

There was a flare of light as Kairi summoned Destiny's Embrace. She pointed it directly at Axel.

"Axel!" she cried. "I'm gonna kick your butt!"

Flame Liberator met her challenge. "You can try, shortstack!"

Roxas watched them immediately launch into battle, despite Terra not having said what they'd be doing once they'd partnered up. No one tried to stop them.

Xion came to stand with him. "He still holds it like Eternal Flames."

He did. Roxas himself had commented on it once. He didn't seem to have any trouble bringing it around to attack but it didn't look very secure. Then again, he'd never once dropped his chakrams.

Sora popped his head up between them, arms snaking around their shoulders and forcing them to take the brunt of his weight. "Are you two going together?"

Roxas met Xion's uneasy gaze with his own. Maybe, if they knew what they were in for, but...

"Actually," Xion hedged, "can I go with you?"

Sora straightened up, surprised. "Sure! Got tired of sparring together?"

"Something like that," Roxas evaded.

Sora nodded once, like he understood exactly what Roxas hadn't said. Maybe he had. At the very least, he could probably sense their discomfort or read it on their faces.

"What about you, Roxas? Who're you going with?"

They looked over to where Riku and Ven were talking with Aqua and Terra.

"Oh," Sora realised. "The numbers are uneven."

The only Keyblade wielder who wasn't here was Mickey. Roxas almost wished he hadn't been so busy that he couldn't make it.

"Oh well, I'll just sit out," he said. It didn't really bother him one way or the other. He had no interest in becoming a Master; he was only here because Axel and Xion had wanted to come.

"No way!" Sora pushed him towards them. "I'm sure they'll let you guys be a group of three."

He would literally rather spend the rest of his life in the Castle That Never Was with the Dusks but he had a feeling Sora wouldn't like that and kept his mouth shut. That didn't stop him from digging his heels in the entire way.

The squealing of the soles of his shoes on the polished floor drew their attention and Roxas resolutely avoided both of their eyes. Just beyond them, Naminé had leaned forward in her seat to better watch Kairi and Axel's ongoing fight. He wondered if it bothered her that she was stuck on the sidelines. She looked like she wanted to join them.

Oh. There was an idea.

Roxas sprang forward out of Sora's ploughing reach, hyperaware of being watched as he passed by Riku and Ven.

"Wanna partner up with me?" he asked, coming to a stop in front of Naminé.

She blinked at him with visible confusion. "I don't have a Keyblade."

Roxas shrugged and held out Oathkeeper. "Here."

She stared at it. "What?"

"I can use one and Kairi can use one, so there's no reason you can't too, right?" he reasoned. "You can borrow Oathkeeper until you can summon your own."

It'd worked when Xion had forgotten how to call on hers. There was no reason why it couldn't work for Naminé, too.

Naminé's eyes were as wide as saucers. She hesitantly reached up as if to take it, but her fingers stopped shy. "Don't you need it?"

He'd been using one a lot longer than he'd been using two. It wouldn't be hard to go back to the way he used to fight. "I have a spare," he grinned and summoned Oblivion in his other hand as proof.

It was good enough for Naminé. She slid off the throne and wrapped her hand around Oathkeeper's grip. When it didn't vanish once Roxas let go, her face lit up in excitement.

"Thank you," she breathed. Roxas hoped she'd be able to summon her own Keyblade soon if it meant this much to her. Some of her joy faltered. "Are you sure you want me to be your partner? I'm not going to be even close to the same level as you."

"'Course I'm sure." He didn't care about this stuff half as much as the rest of them. If Naminé's lack of training meant she couldn't join in with whatever Terra and Aqua were planning, then he'd just sit out with her and they could do their own thing.

He turned to Isa, whose expression immediately went carefully blank. Roxas pretended he hadn't seen the soft smile that had been there a second ago. "You can probably join in with Lunatic if you want."

Isa's mouth twitched up into a smirk. He held up his gummiphone so Roxas could see the screen: a slightly blurred photo of a startled Axel trying to fend off an unexpectedly strong blow from Kairi. "I have more than enough to keep myself entertained."

Roxas couldn't restrain the laugh that bubbled up. "Send that to me."

"I was thinking of posting it on Kingstagram."

Absolutely pure evil. They shared a conspiratorial nod, and then Roxas and Naminé made their way over to where the others had congregated to watch Axel and Kairi. Naminé clutched Oathkeeper to her chest like she was expecting someone to try and take it from her.

"At least this time you don't have to use a stick," Xion teased as they reached her and Sora.

Roxas snickered at the memory. "It didn't break no matter how hard I hit. I'd use it again."

Sora frowned at them. "Stick?"

"I forgot how to use my Keyblade for a while," Xion explained. "Roxas let me borrow his and he... improvised."

If anything, Sora only grew more confused. "I don't think that would be very effective against the Heartless."

"About as much as any other weapon," Roxas said. Which was basically useless, but still. "I just had to make sure Xion dealt the final blow so we could collect the hearts."

Kairi flew past them, digging her heels into the floor to slow her skid. She barely came to a full stop before she was throwing herself forward again, meeting Axel blow-for-blow. So far it had been pretty close but it was obvious the longer they watched that the only thing keeping Axel in the fight was his experience. Kairi's skill with the Keyblade was a lot more developed than his. The outcome might have been different if Axel had been using Eternal Flames instead, but in the end Roxas wasn't all that surprised when he finally yielded, flat on his back and panting heavily.

"Alright, you win!" he huffed.

Kairi raised both hands in victory to thunderous applause. Destiny's Embrace vanished and she reached down to help Axel back to his feet.

"When did you get so good?" Axel let her pull him up.

Kairi grinned cheekily. "You're just out of practice."

"I see where Xion got her sass."

Beside him, Roxas felt Xion stiffen. But when he glanced at her, she refused to meet his eye.

Axel stretched, working out the kinks in his back. "Just you wait! I'll return the favour. I'm not gonna stop until I beat you fair and square."

Kairi laughed. "So never?"

"Hardy harr," he shoved her back a step. "Laugh it up while you can, princess."

"Xion?" Roxas asked quietly. "You okay?"

Xion still wouldn't look at him. "I'm fine."

She didn't look fine. He wanted to press for details, but Aqua's call cut him off before he could, drawing everyone's attention back to her and Terra.

"We're going to split you into two teams. One team will be working with me, and the other will be with Terra."

He expected the pairs to be divided in half, with one person from each pair on each team. Instead, they stayed together, with Roxas and Naminé being lumped together with Riku and Ven, while Sora, Xion, Kairi, and Axel made up the other team.

"Alright, Team Terra!" Terra waved at them, heading for the door. "Let's go!"

"Team Terra?" Roxas echoed.

"I think he means us," Naminé said. Riku and Ven were already trailing after him.

"Do you think if we ask we can switch teams?"

Naminé grabbed his hand and started dragging him along. Roxas cast one last mournful look back at Axel and Xion as he allowed himself to be tugged away. They, at least, offered him pitying waves. Xion still looked upset. He'd have to ask her about it later.


	5. Chapter 5

Terra led them out into the forecourt and then down the mountain path to the training ground.

"For the rest of the weekend, you four are a team," he began and Roxas felt the regret sink in. "It's gonna be you four against the others in tomorrow's game, so between now and then, our focus is entirely on working on not just new techniques, but also your teamwork."

Roxas raised a hand.

"Yes, Roxas?"

"Is it too late to swap teams?"

Terra smiled apologetically. "Sorry, but yes."

Damn.

"Any other questions?" There were not. "Then let's jump right in. Your first team assignment is to come up with a name."

"I thought we were Team Terra," Ven laughed.

"I mean, you can keep Team Terra if you want but that was a joke," Terra said. "You don't have to decide right now but I wanna hear what you've picked by tomorrow morning, okay?"

Roxas glanced sidelong at the rest of his 'team'. Somehow he seriously doubted they'd be able to agree on anything, let alone a team name. From Terra's expression, he was experiencing similar doubts.

"For the first part of today, we're going to be working on physical skills," Terra continued. He eyed them all critically, lingering on Ven the least. "How much do you guys know about attack commands?"

"A fair bit," Riku said.

"Riku, I'm going to be honest. I don't even know why you're here. I'm pretty sure there's almost nothing I can teach you that you that you don't already know."

"Yeah, Riku, go home," Roxas sneered.

Riku ignored him. Jerk.

"What about you two?" Terra turned to him and Naminé.

Naminé dropped her gaze to her feet. "Assume I know nothing," she confessed sheepishly.

Roxas shrugged. "If by attack commands you mean attack things, then plenty."

Terra laughed. "Okay, here's what we're going to do then. Roxas and Naminé will practice some attack commands, and Riku and Ven will work on Keyblade form changes. Roxas, why don't you take Naminé through the basics while I get them set up?"

Terra led Ven and Riku over to the other side of the training ground. Roxas watched until he summoned Ends of the Earth and started demonstrating, before turning back to Naminé. He'd never had to teach anyone how to use the Keyblade before; he and Xion had sort of just known. Honestly, he wasn't even sure where to start.

"Okay, um," he bounced Oblivion against his leg. Naminé smiled at him eagerly. She was holding Oathkeeper loosely at her side. "I guess first you need to find a way to hold it that's comfortable." There didn't seem to be a right or wrong way to do that from what he'd seen of the others, but he showed her how he and Xion had always held it back before Roxas had realised he could summon two.

Naminé copied him as best as she could. "Like this?"

It was almost right, except that her legs were too far apart. She'd have a hard time if she needed to move quickly. "Bring your right foot in a little."

She shimmied her foot closer.

He reached out and gently pushed her shoulder and nodded in satisfaction when she only tilted a little.

"Okay," he said, bringing Oblivion up in a guard. "Now hit me."

Naminé hesitated but at his encouraging nod, she lifted Oathkeeper with both hands and struck it against Oblivion with all the force of a feather.

"Go again," he grinned. "You can swing harder than that."

This time there was a notable clang as the two Keyblades connected.

"Better," he said. "Um, when you're fighting you rarely only do only one swing, so it's good to get used to doing a combo, where one strike leads into another." He demonstrated, muscle memory preventing him from needing to even think about it. "Combos tend to vary a lot, so whatever's comfortable for you is fine."

Naminé returned to her base stance and mimed three strikes. The last one had her overreaching and Oathkeeper's tip sank to the ground.

"Heavier than expected, huh?" Terra came over to join them.

Naminé straightened, face red with embarrassment. "A little."

"I can see you've got the theory of it, it's just a matter of working on your muscle memory." He eased her back into her base position, making sure she had a good grip on Oathkeeper before stepping back. "You might be better off training with a shorter Keyblade, too. Oathkeeper is medium length. While you're starting out, a short one like Wayward Wind will make it easier for you to build up muscle strength."

Most of Roxas' Keyblades were medium length but he could think of one that would probably work well for her.

"We have some wooden training Keyblades you can borrow if you want," Terra suggested. She didn't want to; reluctant to part with the real thing. Roxas couldn't blame her.

"Here, I've got something," Roxas said, twisting Oathkeeper in her grip until he could access the keychain. He removed Oblivion's keychain and clipped it on alongside Oathkeeper's. In a flash, Oathkeeper transformed into the much shorter Two Become One. "How's that? Better?"

Naminé gave it an experimental swing. "It's a lot lighter," she said. "But didn't you want to use Oblivion?"

The Kingdom Key was Roxas' Keyblade's base form. It was a familiar weight in his hand, even after so long. "I've got a lot more keychains than just Oathkeeper and Oblivion." If he really wanted to, he'd go and grab another one. But he didn't mind using Kingdom Key.

"Well that settles that then," Terra smiled at them. "Ready to learn some attack commands?"

Over the next couple of hours, Terra had them working on a specific command until he was satisfied that they'd mastered it. Roxas had been given Spark Raid, which let him make use of his natural light abilities, while Naminé was tasked with getting the hang of her basic combo swings. By practicing on each other, it also let her get used to blocking (and, in Terra's words, "remind you that blocking is a thing that exists, Roxas". As if he couldn't just destroy the enemy in the time everyone else took to bother blocking attacks).

Terra alternated between supervising them and Ven and Riku, whose Keyblades were rapidly changing shape, offering advice and critiques where needed. When their performance met some unknown criteria, he paused the session to have Roxas and Riku switch places.

"You ever done a formchange, Roxas?" Terra asked, leading him over to join Ven.

Roxas made a point of keeping his eyes fixed on Terra. "No."

"Each Keyblade has the potential to unlock abilities or forms when you meet certain criteria in battle. Formchanges come in three different varieties and each one is triggered differently. The first of these we won't be getting into today, which are Keyblade Gliders."

Roxas had seen Terra, Aqua, and Ven use Keyblade Gliders before. While it looked cool, he couldn't really see the point of it. It was much faster and easier to just use a Corridor to get where you needed to go. No need to waste time summoning and changing your Keyblade or travelling through the lanes between worlds when you could just create your own.

"The next two types are pretty similar. One is a Keyblade's inherent formchange, and the other is a form that isn't tied to a Keyblade but to specific types of attack commands." Terra counted them both on his fingers. "The second type are called Command Styles. This one is Critical Impact."

He swung out Ends of the Earth at the large disks hanging from the closest pole with ground-based physical attacks until a soft glow appeared around him and his Keyblade. The three strikes he issued then were visibly more powerful, and the final downward swing created a shockwave that had Roxas and Ven staggering back a step.

"There are a bunch of other types, depending on what type of commands you use," Terra straightened. The glow was gone. "For example, ice-based magic will give you Diamond Dust, or a combination of thunder, mine, and strike commands can get you Rhythm Mixer. Command Styles also differ from regular formchanges in that they usually only unlock abilities rather than changing the shape of your Keyblade, although there are exceptions like Wingblade. Command Styles are easier than Keyblade formchanges in my experience, so why don't we start with that?"

"I can try and teach you Fever Pitch?" Ven suggested. "It gives a speed boost and uses light magic, so it'd probably work well for you. And it's really easy to activate cause you only need to use physical attacks."

"Sounds perfect. I'll leave you to it," Terra agreed on Roxas' behalf, and then went off to check on Riku and Naminé before Roxas could think to protest.

Ven twirled Wayward Wind idly in one hand, offering Roxas a smile that he didn't return.

"Okay," he started awkwardly in the face of Roxas' underwhelming enthusiasm. "Um, so the easiest way to build up enough physical attacks to activate Fever Pitch is probably for us to spar, if that's okay with you?"

Roxas looked somewhere over Ven's left shoulder. "How do you activate it?" He'd hit things plenty of times without any kind of indication that there was more he could be doing.

"It's sort of a feeling, I guess. Like your Keyblade is talking to you, but without actually talking."

That was not at all helpful. Thanks, Ven.

Ven seemed to realise this too. "Maybe we should just try it? Concentrate on your connection with your Keyblade and see if you can feel a change?"

Well, if it was a fight he wanted, Roxas wasn't going to say no. He dropped into his base stance and watched as Ven did the same. Their stances were different; Ven held Wayward Wind backwards with only one hand. At least something about them wasn't the same.

Roxas was the first to strike. He'd never been patient and Ven had shown no signs of making the first move despite having been the one to suggest they spar. Ven dodged the attack easily with greater speed than Roxas had honestly expected. He was fast.

"I thought we were supposed to be landing attacks to make this work?" Roxas called after him.

"Sorry, force of habit."

This time Ven was the one to come at him. The short length of his Keyblade meant he had to get in closer to land a hit than Roxas did. It was easy enough to catch Wayward Wind just under the teeth and force him back and then whirl around with a counterattack.

It was hard to keep up with Ven's movements. He was faster than anyone Roxas had ever fought.

And then he used reversal.

Roxas staggered, Oblivion slicing through the air where Ven had been just a second ago. Wayward Wind caught him in the back as Ven jumped up behind him, and Roxas was sent crashing forwards. He caught himself on one hand and turned it into a dodge roll. By the time he was up on his feet again, Wayward Wind was gone, replaced instead by six swords of light floating at his back like wings.

"This one's Wingblade," Ven told him. He grabbed two of the swords from behind him and charged forward again, dual wielding.

Muscle memory was the only thing that saved him from another hit, the shock nearly paralysing him. Reversal, dual wielding, _light_. The swords struck Kingdom Key with unexpected force, forcing Roxas to slide back across the grass.

If it was possible, Ven had become even faster. But he was also pulling his punches, trying to give Roxas the chance he needed to get enough physical attacks in to build up to Fever Pitch.

Roxas had lost interest in learning a Command Style, though. Bad enough that he'd used a move against him that he'd thought only he used, but to try to use light against him? That was like trying to use fire against Axel. Stupid. _Insulting_.

Roxas stood his ground when Ven, realising that he was going to try for another attack in the lull, came charging forward again.

"Too slow!" Roxas taunted, dismissing Kingdom Key and darting under Ven's swipe. He used his own reversal, snagging two of the swords from where they floated and forcing the others to turn on their 'master'.

Ven faltered, dropping his stance and swords both as he whirled around in shock. Roxas only just managed to stop his swing before it could hit him in the side of the head.

Ven stared at him with wide eyes and there was something about his expression that Roxas didn't like. Like it wasn't Roxas he was seeing. It was the way Riku sometimes looked at him. It pissed him off.

"Roxas... can we-?"

"Okay, bring it in!" Terra called.

Roxas snapped his arms down, dissipating all six of the swords into fragments and ignoring whatever Ven had been about to say in favour of going to where Terra was standing between the two groups. Whatever it was, he didn't want to hear it.

Naminé and Riku were already waiting. Naminé was visibly worn out and Terra tossed her an elixir just as Roxas reached them.

"Good work, all of you," Terra praised them as Ven joined the group. He kept trying to catch Roxas' eye but Roxas resolutely ignored him. "I'm impressed with how quickly you're picking things up. We'll be back here after lunch to work on your teamwork."

Ugh. Teamwork was the last thing he wanted to be doing. Not with Ven. And definitely not with Riku.


	6. Chapter 6

In the interest of taking as many embarrassing photos as possible, and with the knowledge that Lea was the perfect target to get them, Isa had remained with 'Team Super Friendship' for the morning training session. Their teamwork had been impressive, right down to choosing their name in a matter of mere minutes. Even Aqua had seemed a little surprised by it.

Their efficiency saw them heading to the dining room for lunch before the other team made it back but it wasn't long before they too started filtering in. Roxas spotted them almost immediately, making a beeline for where Xion had saved him a seat. Instead of taking it, though, he draped himself over her shoulders with an exhausted sigh.

Xion had been... off was probably the best word for it, for the entirety of the morning session. She'd been trying to hide it, but Isa knew he wasn't the only one who'd noticed. She'd hesitated to summon her Keyblade and then had been distracted enough through the drills Aqua had set up for them that more than once she'd taken a hit from Sora that Isa knew for a fact that she could have avoided or blocked. Roxas' return now brought a small smile to her face, although it was nothing like her normal ones.

"How'd it go?"

Roxas groaned. "We did attack commands and formchanges."

Xion kicked out the chair beside her and he gratefully sank into it, digging into the sandwich she'd made for him without further preamble. He looked tired – more than Isa thought a short training session would make him, given his results in endurance challenges.

Riku was the next to arrive, heading straight for Sora and Kairi. It was a few more minutes before Naminé and Ven caught up. The two of them sat unexpectedly further away than the rest of them. Naminé had her sketchbook.

Roxas glanced briefly at Ven and then quickly looked away before Ven could catch him at it. "What'd you guys do?" he asked after a moment.

"Shotlocks and magic commands, mostly," Lea, beside Isa, shrugged. "Basically what you did but with an emphasis on magic."

A foot kicked Isa in the leg. Roxas was staring at him expectantly, answering the question of the source. Knowing exactly what he wanted, Isa slid his gummiphone across the table. He'd taken a fair few photos, mostly of Lea and Xion, but some of Sora and Kairi too. Almost all of them were deliberately unflattering.

"We're definitely printing this one for the wall," Roxas laughed, turning the phone around so Xion could see the photo of Lea staring at his empty hand in confusion. Flame Liberator was just a distant speck in the background, flying away from the force of Kairi's shotlock.

The wall along the stairs of their home had very quickly become The Spot to hang photos. So far it was still relatively barren. They'd all expressed an interest in adding to it.

Lea took one look at the screen and rounded on Isa. "Hey! You were taking photos?!"

Isa was entirely unapologetic. "Did you really think I was going to sit there all morning doing nothing?"

Lea leaned across the table to snatch the phone. He ignored Roxas' indignant "Hey!" and started swiping through them. "There's not a single flattering one of me in here!"

"That's hardly my fault."

"If you want to look good in photos, you've got to look good in real life first," Roxas teased and Axel gasped dramatically. Roxas used the distraction to practically lunge over the tabletop to reclaim the phone. He brought up a different photo: this time one of Lea lying face-down on the floor while Kairi stood victorious over him, flexing for the camera. "How did this even happen?"

"She broke his guard with a shotlock and then got him with gravity," Xion peered over his shoulder. "This isn't fair, Isa; you didn't get any of his shotlock! It was really strong!"

"Wow," Lea said loudly. "Can't believe Xion is my only friend!"

A little further down the table, Sora's head whipped in their direction. "Does that mean we can have Roxas?!" he cried around a mouthful of bread. Then, to Roxas, "You can come live with me! Mom won't mind!"

Roxas made a face that was just a little bit too close to considering for comfort.

"Absolutely not," Isa said, at the same time as Lea's, "You signed those guardianship forms. No take-backs!"

Riku put his head in his hands and Kairi poked him teasingly. At the other end of the table, Ven looked up from Naminé's sketchpad. "Guardianship forms?"

Riku's voice was muffled. "Don't ask."

* * *

When the second session began, Isa opted to abandon his earlier post in favour of following the as yet unnamed team out to the training ground. He took an out of the way seat on the wall, watching as Terra gathered the four of them together.

"Apart from physical abilities, Keyblades also allow for magic commands," he was saying. "This is often in the form of adapting basic spells into more powerful magic commands, like deep freeze and fission firaga." He summoned Ends of the Earth. "And then there are shotlocks. Every Keyblade has its own shotlock forms, which allow you to target multiple enemies from a distance. My favourite is Ultima Cannon."

He aimed his Keyblade at the rings hanging from the equipment posts. When he'd locked onto his targets, Ends of the Earth transformed into a massive cannon that fired large orbs of energy. The equipment's arms went flying around their post from the force, but evidently the rings themselves had been enchanted to withstand even the worst damage.

His audience were left gaping.

"I'm supposed to be devoting most of the time in this last session to getting you guys to practice shotlocks and magic commands and then whatever's left over on friendship commands, but I think we'd better get through the first part as quickly as possible."

Isa stifled a snort. It was going to take a lot more than friendship commands to get Roxas to cooperate with Riku or Ven.

Ven and Riku were already familiar with both shotlocks and magic commands and, particularly in Ven's case, were quite adept at them. Roxas' own self-taught style and proficiency in basic elemental magic lent itself easily to adapting, and Naminé had been forced to practice her magic abilities in order to defend herself during the original Organization's failing days, so Isa was sure they'd both pick it up without much difficulty.

He watched in interest as Terra, no doubt believing the same thing, directed Ven to work with both Riku and Roxas, while he focused one-on-one with Naminé, who needed more assistance than the rest of them, even if only due to less experience.

Across the grounds, Ven had Roxas and Riku standing side-by-side. Roxas' expression promised suffering. Riku and Ven were visibly uncomfortable. Isa held up his gummiphone and snapped a photo.

"Let's start with shotlocks," Ven said after a moment.

The only one of the three of them who hadn't done a shotlock before was Roxas. This was not lost on him, if his scowl was any indicator.

Ven shifted awkwardly in the face of it. "Riku, you've done them before right?"

"Yeah, but not often," Riku said.

"Okay, so it'll be good to get some more practice in. Why don't you go first? Keep your lock count low, for now."

He stood out of the way so Riku had a clear view of the four-ring set-up, and Riku called on Braveheart. At Ven's encouraging nod, Riku jumped into the air, firing a barrage of dark projectiles straight for the rings. The rings were sent spinning, just as Terra's had caused.

"Perfect," Ven praised. "Do you want to try, Roxas?"

Roxas brought his Keyblade up level with his shoulder, frown deepening as he concentrated. He was using the Kingdom Key – likely because Naminé was currently in possession of Two Become One – but he was no less formidable for it.

For a long moment, nothing happened. Then, light began gathering at the tip, but it was white instead of the orange and purple Isa knew the Kingdom Key's shotlock to be.

"Let the power come from the Keyblade, not from you," Riku offered.

"Shut up!" Roxas snapped. The light faded.

"Close your eyes for a moment," Ven stepped in.

Roxas eyed him dubiously.

"Trust me."

He didn't.

Ven sighed. "Please?"

Roxas finally relented, but he didn't look happy about it.

"Concentrate on the connection you have with your Keyblade. Can you feel it?"

"...Yeah."

"Keyblades have a way of being... more alive, I suppose you could say, than most weapons. They have a will of their own. Work with it, rather than trying to force it."

"It has a will of its own alright," he grumbled. He took a deep breath, focusing, but the tip remained dull. Roxas opened his eyes, frustrated. "It's not working!"

"You're trying too hard," Riku said.

Roxas hurled his Keyblade at him and Riku only just managed to bring Braveheart up in time to prevent getting hit.

"Real mature."

"I'm more mature than _you_." Kingdom Key reappeared in his hand of its own volition and Roxas glared at it.

"Riku, you're not helping," Ven quickly stepped between them. "Roxas, take a breath and try again."

He did as he was told, but Isa suspected it was only because Ven had sided with him against Riku. Why Terra had thought leaving these three alone together was a good idea, Isa would never understand.

After the third failed attempt, the frustration took over. To Isa, it was painfully obvious – remnants of whatever trouble he'd had in the earlier session combining with his failure now. Ven and Riku saw it too, from Ven's sympathetic smile and Riku's carefully neutral expression.

"I've seen Sora use Ragnarok before," Riku said gently. "Do you want me to show you what you're aiming for?"

It was meant with good intentions, but it was by far the wrong thing to say. The only warning any of them got was an irritated growl and then Roxas shoved Ven out of the way to lunge at Riku. No sooner had Riku caught the attack on Braveheart's flat edge was Roxas bouncing back to come at him again from another angle. On the other end of the grounds, Terra and Naminé whirled around at the commotion.

Isa stood from the wall, watching carefully.

It was almost impossible to keep track of what was going on. Even glowing as he was, Roxas was practically a blur as he and Riku clashed. For the moment, Riku remained on the defensive, but at this rate it wouldn't last long.

This fight had been a long time coming.

"Hey!" Terra marched over. "Stop it! This is the exact opposite of teamwork!"

Ven grabbed his arm before he could interfere. "Wait. Maybe we should just let him get it out of his system."

It was an assessment Isa was in agreement with. Trying to stop them would only make things worse now.

"Fight back!" Roxas yelled, slamming Kingdom Key down so hard that Riku's arms shook from the force of it.

"I don't want to fight you," Riku shoved him off.

"Why? Too much like fighting _Sora_?!"

"No," Riku ducked under the next swing, and this time used Braveheart's guard to knock him back. "I'm trying to get along with you, Roxas. I don't want to fight."

"I don't care what you want!" Roxas skidded back across the grass, heels kicking up dirt. "It's always been about you! You've never given a damn what anyone else wants!"

"That's not true."

"Isn't it?!" Roxas slid around him with reversal and Riku only just managed to duck under the blow aimed for his head. "I don't remember being asked if I wanted to die for someone I'd never met!" Their Keyblades connected, Riku managing to parry the blow but forced to block the next three. "Did you ask Xion if she wanted to be erased from existence?! You go on and on about Sora! Do you think Sora wanted people to die for him?!"

Riku faltered.

"Stop hiding behind him!" Roxas slashed at the air. "It's never been about him. It's always been about _you_!"

"You're right."

Roxas paused. Obviously, he had not expected agreement.

Riku stared down at Braveheart. "I was hiding behind Sora. I used him to justify my own actions and it came at a cost no one should have had to pay. I'm sorry."

Roxas glowered at him. "Sorry doesn't fix it!"

"No, it doesn't," Riku conceded. "But I am."

Roxas narrowed his eyes, breathing heavily. Ven was still holding Terra's arm, stopping him from intervening, and Naminé, wide-eyed, showed no signs of trying. His gaze slid over to Isa, searching. Isa offered him a short nod.

"Rematch," Roxas challenged. "One Keyblade each. No cheating."

Riku let out a breath, nodding. "Okay. Where and when?"

"Memory Skyscraper. Right now." A pause. "Isa as judge."

Riku opened the Corridor himself. "Let's go then."

Roxas paused only long enough to switch out Kingdom Key for Two Become One with a muttered comment to Naminé, before slipping after him.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Terra asked as Isa made to follow them.

"I will intervene if it gets out of hand," Isa promised. But that was all he'd do. It wasn't his place to do any more than that. And if he was being honest, it would probably be cathartic for Roxas. His tolerance had been hanging from a thread for a long time. "Stopping them will do more harm than good."

It felt like it had been a long time since Isa had been to Dark City but it remained exactly as it had always been. He'd expected them to be swarmed with Heartless the moment they arrived and the lack of them was unsettling. Perhaps they too could feel the tension. Which was just as well; Isa had his hands full trying to film the battle without needing to focus on fending them off too.

The fight was long – Riku was taking it seriously – but in the end it was no real surprise when he landed hard and didn't get up, the sharpened point of Two Become One pressed against his throat. Riku might have been the only Master between them, but that was more about skill than power. And even back in the Organization, clueless and blank, Roxas had grown stronger than any of them had ever expected him to; rather than crippling him, Xion's absorption of his powers had only forced him to overcome his own limits.

More than that, though, Roxas had inherited Sora's infallible determination.

Riku headed back first in a strategic yet not sullen retreat, leaving Roxas rain soaked and panting in the middle of the courtyard.

"You filmed it, right?" Roxas asked after a moment, back to him.

"Of course." Isa had even taken a photo of Riku's final defeat for the wall and when Roxas turned to face him, he held it up for him to see.

Even battered and tired, it was the happiest Isa had seen Roxas all day. "I owe you, like, so much ice cream."

"Feeling better?"

"A little."

Isa hummed. "You can't solve all of your problems by hitting them."

Roxas lifted his chin, the picture of defiance. "I can try."

That he certainly could, though there was very little likelihood of success. He'd have a much better time of it if he learned to simply discuss his problems with the people who supported him like a rational human being. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Roxas hesitated, which was closer to a yes than Isa had honestly expected. But it still wasn't one.

"Shall I take you up on your ice cream offer then?" he suggested instead. If he still wanted to talk about it, at least he'd have the comfort of the familiar.

"Okay."

They opted for the top of Memory Skyscraper instead of the usual clock tower – Roxas ducking off through a Corridor to buy the ice cream. He returned within a few minutes, passing Isa a bar of sea-salt. It was with no small amount of surprise that Isa noted that he'd brought one for himself – though it was salted caramel instead.

For several minutes, they sat in silence, looking out over the rooftops of Dark City. It was a view Isa had only very rarely seen. Idly, he wondered if people had once lived here or if it had always just been the Heartless.

"Riku was the Organization imposter," Roxas said.

Isa had already known this. He said nothing.

"He was helping DiZ and Naminé fix Sora's memories, which meant he was always planning on having me and Xion disappear." He smiled wryly. "I guess he talked Xion into it. That's why she ran away." He turned to Isa. "But you already knew that."

"I did," Isa confirmed.

"And you know about the fake Twilight Town."

"Yes."

Roxas stared down at his half-eaten ice cream. "I can't help but think that it was his fault. Him and DiZ. If it hadn't been for him, maybe Xion wouldn't have left. Or maybe if he hadn't stopped me, I could have fixed it before it was too late. Destroyed Kingdom Hearts like she wanted me to. Found a way to bring her back." His grip on the ice cream stick tightened. "Things could have stayed the way they were."

It never would have been able to remain as it had been. Even if Xion hadn't run, it was always just a matter of time until she fully absorbed Roxas or the other way around, just as Xemnas had intended. And if Roxas had tried to destroy Kingdom Hearts, he would have brought the collective force of the remaining members of Organization XIII down upon him (perhaps with Axel as the only exception). Roxas was strong, but not strong enough to beat all of them.

"Do you really believe that?"

He didn't. Isa could see it on his face.

"Have you considered talking about this with Riku?"

Roxas snorted. "Sure, that'd go well."

Isa studied him carefully. This had been bothering him for a long time."You were willing to go through every single one of us for Xion," he said. "Perhaps the two of you aren't as different as you believe."

He expected his statement to be met with anger. Instead, Roxas took another bite of ice cream and said nothing.


	7. Chapter 7

Lea stared up at the ceiling, arms tucked comfortably under his head. The beds on offer here were equal parts huge and comfortable. He was seriously considering trying to steal it. Would anyone even notice one missing bed among dozens? He didn't think so.

The door to his room clicked open and Lea tilted his head just enough to identify Xion peeking in.

"Are you busy?" she asked.

"I'm trying to work out the best way to drag this bed through a Corridor." He patted the duvet. "Come feel how soft it is."

Xion pattered over and climbed up beside him. She let out a little 'oh' of comfort as she splayed out. "Maybe we could just take the mattress."

She sounded serious. He'd corrupted her. Isa was going to kill him.

...Unless they got him to try it too.

Xion rolled over so she was facing him and rested her head against his shoulder. Lea draped an arm over her. Something had been bothering her all day. More than just the lingering upset from the Incident a few days prior. There was a hesitance to how she'd been fighting that he'd never seen in her before.

"Everything okay?" he asked, though he wasn't expecting her to want to talk about it without a lot of prying.

"Yes," she said. "Just thinking."

He cracked a smile. "Don't hurt yourself."

A pointy boot kicked him in the knee. Yeah, he probably deserved that.

"You wanna tell me what you're thinking?"

Xion hummed in a way that could have been a yes or a no. "You want to be a Keyblade Master, don't you?"

"Well, yeah," he said, surprised by the question. "Didn't work this hard just to quit halfway." It would probably take him a good long while before he'd be ready to take the exam, but Lea didn't mind.

Xion tilted her head up to meet his eye. "Why?"

Lea held her gaze for as long as he could before the embarrassment had him turning away. He'd never actually explained to anyone except Kairi why he'd really insisted on joining the Magic Key Club. When Roxas and Xion had come back in the Badlands, there hadn't been time for more than a Spark Notes version of what they were in for. By that point, they'd already known he'd gotten himself a Keyblade and the only thing he'd bothered to add was that he'd wanted the excuse to stay plot relevant – he couldn't very well make good on his promise if he got lost in the footnotes. Not that he'd managed it in the end anyway.

And that had been true. But not the _whole_ truth.

"Old Yen Sid didn't want to give me a Keyblade, you know," he told her. "Pretty sure he only did to make me stop bugging him about it."

He could feel Xion watching him. Lea could tell without needing to see her face that she had no idea where he was going with this, but she was patient.

"I told him the same thing I told you two: that I wanted it so I'd have a reason to hang around. But that was only half of it." Lea forced himself to look at her. "The real reason was because it made me feel closer to you and Roxas." He'd thought it was only Roxas at the time – his memories of Xion still lost – but looking back on it, he'd always known something (someone) was missing. "I got my Keyblade and I got you and Roxas and Isa back. The least I can do is see it through all the way, right?"

Prove to himself that he really deserved to keep it. (Keep _them_.)

Xion was silent for a long while, considering his words. "So you're not going to let the fact that the Keyblade didn't choose you get in your way."

Lea shrugged as well as he could without dislodging her. "Hey, just because the Keyblade doesn't have good taste doesn't mean I'm gonna sit on the bleachers, got it memorised?"

She smiled, hiding it in his jacket.

"What about you, Xion? You wanna be a Master?"

There had to be a reason why she was bringing it up. It felt like she was looking for advice. What she wanted advice for, however, remained a mystery.

"I don't know," she said quietly. She stretched out a hand like she was going to summon her Kingdom Key and then closed it into a fist instead. "I think I want to, but it feels like it would be a lie if I did."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, back up a second," Lea lifted himself up onto his elbows, forcing Xion to sit up too. "What would be a lie?"

Xion clenched her fingers into the duvet. "My Keyblade isn't real, so I can't really be a Keyblade Master."

Her Keyblade wasn't what? Lea bit back a sigh. Poor Xion. Even after everything, she still had doubts. The Organization had really screwed her over. If its members weren't already faded and gone, he'd be sorely tempted to finish them off himself.

"What makes you think your Keyblade's not real?" he asked carefully.

"It's a copy of Roxas'," she said, like it was obvious and he was just stupid.

"I'm gonna need more than that."

Xion stared at him incredulously. "It's a _copy_. Like how I can copy Lunatic and Eternal Flames. It's not the real thing."

Lea gave her his best disbelieving frown. "Tell that to all the bruises it gave me."

" _Axel_."

" _Xion_." He sat up properly. She was really insisting on this, huh. "So your Keyblade's a fake, huh?" he challenged. "Well if we follow that logic, then Roxas' can't be real either, seeing how his is a copy of Sora's. From what I hear, there was only ever supposed to be one Kingdom Key."

Indignation rose up in her like an inflating balloon. He wasn't done yet.

"And that's not even considering you. Are you a copy, Xion?"

She hesitated and Lea was suddenly inexplicably angry. He poked her in the chest, right where her heart was.

"Whose heart's in there?"

Xion looked away. "Mine."

"Sorry, what? Didn't quite catch that."

"It's mine," she repeated, louder this time.

"Right. _Yours_ ," he agreed. "Is your heart a copy?"

"No."

"No," he nodded. "You grew that all by yourself. Maybe you started out with someone else's building blocks, but what you made with them is all you."

She nodded, still refusing to look at him. It felt more like she was agreeing to get him to shut up than actually believing it. It was a tactic that had never once worked for Isa; she wasn't going to get away with it either.

"It's the same for your Keyblade. Maybe it started out as just a reflection, but I'd bet you a month's worth of sea-salt ice cream that it's no fake now." Lea held out a hand. After summoning Flame Liberator for the first time, he was confident he knew what the real deal felt like. "C'mon, let's see it."

Xion blinked at him, before hesitantly calling on her Keyblade. Lea twitched his fingers expectantly and she held it out for him to take.

He gave it an experimental swish, inordinately pleased that he was able to hold it without it vanishing. It was warm, almost like he was holding her hand. "Feels like the real deal to me," he said. "But if you still don't believe me, we can go bully Yen Sid."

"No, don't," Xion grabbed his arm, dragging it back down so she could reclaim her Keyblade.

"If I'm wrong, and it is just a copy," he passed it back to her, "then it's a perfect copy. In which case, there's no difference anyway."

Xion rested Kingdom Key across her knees, one hand on the grip and the other resting on the teeth. Lea couldn't tell from her expression what she was thinking.

"When I fought Riku and lost, he told me that my Keyblade was a sham," she confessed quietly.

Ah, Lea was starting to understand Roxas' grudge. "Are we really going to trust Riku's judgement? Mr Plunge-My-World-Into-Darkness-Because-Some-Guy-Told-Me-To? Really?"

She whacked him in Riku's defence. "That's different."

Okay, it was a little different, but Lea thought his point still stood.

"Here," he shifted so he was facing her fully and called on Flame Liberator. Getting her to hold it wouldn't do anything to convince her, since her replicating powers would let her use anything, but he had a better idea. With his free hand, he grabbed one of hers and placed it on the handle, and then slowly let go until she was holding it by herself.

He still remembered the words Yen Sid had spoken for his own bequeathing. The fact that it rhymed helped, although that wasn't the reason why.

"In your hand, take this Key," he began, trying not to laugh at the confusion that immediately settled on Xion's face. "So long as you have the makings, then through this simple act of taking, its wielder you shall one day be. And you will find me, friend – no ocean will contain you then. No more borders around, or below, or above, so long as you champion the ones you love."

"What?" she asked, corners of her mouth twitching up even as she continued to frown at him.

"It's the Official Keyblade Bequeathing Poem or something," he shrugged. "Yen Sid recited it at me when he agreed to give me a Keyblade."

"Then..."

"Yep. Consider yourself bequeathed." If her Keyblade hadn't been real before, she'd be able to summon a real one now. Not that she'd probably notice the difference.

She gave him back Flame Liberator and after a moment's hesitation resummoned her own Keyblade. It looked exactly the same as it always had.

"It feels the same," she said.

Lea grinned at her. "Must've been the real deal after all then, huh?"

There was a tiny smile on her face as she examined it. It reminded him of a smaller scale version of the joy she'd felt when she'd remembered how to summon it way back when. Come to think of it, that was probably when she'd gotten the potential for the real thing; waving around Roxas' for as long as she had had probably negated the need for the poem.

There was another knock at the door and they both turned as Roxas poked his head in. Isa was standing out in the hall beside him, a plastic bag in his hand. Roxas was all roughed up, like he'd been doing more than just training. He glanced briefly at Xion's Kingdom Key with tired eyes until she dismissed it.

"We brought ice cream," he announced instead of whatever it was he'd been thinking.

Lea and Xion squished up closer together to make room for them. Isa passed them the bag as he took a seat on the edge of the bed. Roxas climbed up beside him, only to immediately flop onto his side and bury his face into the duvet.

"This bed is so soft," he sighed. "How come you get the soft one?"

"There's only two ice creams in here?" Xion peered into the bag.

"We already had ours," Isa told her with a glance at Lea that said more than words ever could. Something had gone down then.

Lea made a mental note to ask about it later.

"We have to steal this mattress," Roxas announced, eyes shut. "I need it."

"We are not stealing anything," Isa reprimanded.

"Sorry, Isa," Xion said. "But it's three against one. Democracy rules."

Lea let out a startled laugh. Since when did she know about democracy, of all things? Ienzo, probably. Damn, he had a feeling this was going to come back to bite him.

"Democracy still has to obey the law," Isa countered, looking a little frazzled by such an unexpected statement.

Lea grabbed him by the shirt and yanked him down face-first onto the duvet. He didn't immediately get up.

"...Perhaps we can ask where they bought it," his muffled voice reached them.


	8. Chapter 8

Roxas could count the number of times he'd seen stars on his hands. Twilight Town never got dark and the World That Never Was was perpetually overcast and rainy. Most of the other worlds he'd been to had been much the same, or he'd never seen them at night.

The night sky of Land of Departure was beautiful – tonight especially, with its streaks of shooting stars. He'd spotted the first of them through Axel's still-open window and had carefully extricated himself from the pile the four of them had ended up in as quickly as he could without waking them.

Out sitting on the wall was the best place to watch the show.

He didn't hear the soft footsteps on the grass coming his way, entranced as he was, but nothing could have distracted him from the growing proximity of a heart so strongly connected to his. Still, maybe if Roxas pretended he wasn't there he'd take the hint and go away.

"Meteor shower," Ven said, coming to stand at the wall beside him – close enough that Roxas could punch him in the leg if he wanted, yet still far enough to give him space. "I haven't seen one since..."

Roxas clenched his hands over the edge of the stone wall.

"Who won?"

He didn't need clarification to know what Ven was referring to. "Who do you think?"

Ven turned to look at him. "Did it help?"

Roxas grunted noncommittally. It had, in that he'd been able to let out the pent up frustration that had been building for months. But it also hadn't solved the problem.

Ven sighed, sitting down beside him but careful to maintain the distance. He leaned back on his hands, tilting his head skywards. "The night before Aqua and Terra's Mark of Mastery exam, we sat here and watched a meteor shower."

Roxas glanced at him from the corner of his eye. Ven's attention was fixed on the stars, a small nostalgic smile on his face. Roxas' face. Sora's face? They looked the same apart from their hair. Roxas was Sora's Nobody. It made sense for them to share a face. So then why did Sora share Ven's face? Why did Roxas look more like him than he did his own Somebody? Why did Ven have more in common with him than Sora?

Ven met his eye. They stared at each other.

"Can we talk?" Ven broke the silence.

"What's the connection between you and Sora?" Roxas asked, ignoring the question and answering it in the same breath.

Ven blinked, caught off guard. His gaze dropped down to his lap. "Before I came here and met Terra and Aqua, I used to train under Master Xehanort."

Roxas frowned. He couldn't imagine why anyone would want Xehanort as a master. Then again, Roxas had worked under Xemnas, and while it wasn't exactly the same thing it was close enough, wasn't it? Maybe Ven hadn't been in a position to argue either.

"He wanted me to learn to control the darkness. When I wouldn't, he used his Keyblade to cut the darkness out of my heart," Ven continued. "It... broke me, I guess. The darkness in me became Vanitas and what was left was too fractured to hold itself together. Someone reached out to me – a heart, a new one – and it gave part of itself to seal the cracks until I could reclaim Vanitas." Ven smiled at him. "That heart belonged to Sora."

Of course it did. Even before he was a person, Sora was selfless.

"Is that why he looks like you?" Roxas asked.

Ven considered for a moment. "I guess so? I never really thought about it, though I figure that's why Vanitas looks like Sora."

Fantastic. Someone else who Roxas shared a face with. How many was that now? Three? But it still didn't make sense why Roxas looked like Ven instead of Sora. He _was_ Sora.

He could feel Ven studying him and kept his scowl directed at his lap.

"We're not identical, you know," Ven said, as if reading his thoughts. "Your hair is darker than mine."

Roxas rounded on him. "Why do I look like you at all?! I'm supposed to be _Sora_!"

Ven's expression turned sad and he looked away. Roxas felt a stab of guilt for having caused it, despite the frustration. He knew it wasn't Ven's fault. No more than any of it had been Sora's. He knew that. But that didn't make dealing with it any easier.

"...I have a theory," Ven said after a long moment. "If you're really looking for an answer."

"Axel thinks it has to do with your heart being inside Sora's for so long," Roxas confessed quietly. The fight had drained out of him. He was so tired. It felt like he'd never stop fighting to differentiate himself from the others. Never stop being looked at by people and having them see someone else instead.

"I have a different theory. Or at least one that builds off that."

Roxas looked up, interested despite himself.

"When Sora became a Heartless, the hearts he carried inside his were freed, right?" Ven began. "Kairi's went back to her and she woke up. But I didn't. I think... I think my heart went with you."

Roxas stared at him. Axel had asked him once if he was sure he didn't have a heart. Roxas hadn't really understood what a heart even was back then, but he was certain he'd always been able to feel, no matter what the others had said. His friendship with Axel and Xion had always been genuine, even if it hadn't started that way for the two of them. If Ven's theory was true, did that mean those feelings had been because of him? Were the things he'd felt not really him at all?

"I wasn't really awake, I don't think," Ven continued, oblivious. "But there are... snippets? Or dreams? Emotions you must have been feeling. I think my heart connected to the one you were growing for yourself."

Some of that old anger he'd thought he'd outgrown resurfaced and Roxas pulled his knees up to his chest, wrapping his arms around them to hide his face. "Figures," he spat, voice muffled. "Even the parts of me that I thought were _me_ came from someone else."

"What?"

He suddenly longed to be somewhere else. His first thought was the clock tower, but could he really call that his now? Ven had said that he and Terra and Aqua used to sit and watch the stars together. Axel might have been the one to bring Roxas up to the clock tower that first time, but the friendship he'd felt... had it really only been echoes from Ven's heart the whole time?

It wasn't fair.

He had his own heart now, but its foundation was as stolen as the rest of him. Was this how Xion felt? Did she still feel like this? She shared her face with Kairi and Naminé, though she'd never once complained about it. Then again, she hadn't complained about a lot of things Roxas knew had hurt her.

The rustling of clothes told him that Ven was moving. Roxas held himself tighter. If he let go, he might fall apart.

"Roxas."

Maybe he should go home. Axel would understand.

A hand cautiously landed on his shoulder and Roxas instinctively uncurled enough to pull away. Ven let his hand drop to his lap. He'd shifted so that the distance between them was now a matter of inches.

"I don't think I explained it properly," he said apologetically.

"What's there to explain?" Roxas countered. "It makes sense, doesn't it?"

Ven shook his head. "I didn't mean that you were feeling my emotions. I meant I was feeling _yours_."

"Nobodies don't feel anything," Roxas recited automatically. The others had acted otherwise, but they'd made no secret that it was just echoes from memories. Roxas hadn't had any memories, so he hadn't understood it like the rest of them. He'd just felt what he'd felt and assumed that was that. It made far more sense that it was Ven's emotions he was feeling than that a blank slate like him had had his own.

"I don't believe you," Ven challenged. "What I felt from you wasn't some echo. You can't tell me your friendship with Axel and Xion wasn't real, not when you tried so hard to stay together. Maybe my heart helped yours grow faster but it was still your heart."

Roxas let out a shaky breath.

"Do you feel any different about the things that happened now as you did then?"

"No." He still loved Axel and Xion exactly the way he had before – more even in light of how close he'd come to losing them forever. He still felt the injustice of losing Xion, and the anger at Axel's secrets. The fury of Saïx's treatment of Xion, and at the way he'd been used and discarded by so many people so easily. The frustration of always being second-best to Sora.

"But it's just you in there now, right?" Ven smiled. "So they have to be yours. Otherwise it'd be like saying that the things Sora felt while my heart was with him weren't really his either."

Roxas snorted at the thought, reaching up to wipe at his eyes. Sora was too _Sora_ for that to be true. He felt enough for all of them.

"We might look the same, but right from the beginning you've _always_ been you."

It was what Roxas kept telling Xion, and what Sora was always insisting. He'd started to believe it after meeting Sora in person. Maybe it was true for him and Ven, too.

"There are people out there who are born identical, you know? They're called twins," he elaborated when he caught Roxas' eye. "Sometimes they're so similar people have a hard time telling them apart. But no matter how confused they get, they never doubt that they're two different people. Even if they share all the same interests." A warm smile crept onto his face. "It's the same for us and Sora."

They lapsed into silence, Roxas not knowing how to respond and Ven apparently satisfied now that he'd said his piece.

"Hey," Roxas said a few minutes later. The stars streak by overhead.

"Yeah?"

"Earlier. What did you want to say?" Before Roxas had derailed the conversation.

"Oh," he ran a hand through his hair awkwardly. "I wanted to ask if I'd done something to upset you. Xion said it wasn't really me you were avoiding, but I couldn't figure out what other reason there could be."

Roxas rested his chin on his knees. "You didn't do anything." It was this conversation he'd been avoiding, more than anything. Isa was right – he couldn't solve all his problems by hitting them. Unfortunately, ignoring them didn't work either.

"Does that mean you're not going to run away every time you see me now?" Ven teased.

A small smile tugged at Roxas' face. "Only if you make good on that ice cream you promised."

Ven jumped up from his seat. "Wait here," he said and then he was running back towards the castle.

Roxas watched him go until he disappeared from view, before turning back to the meteor shower. He'd almost forgotten about it.

Ven returned barely five minutes later, a tub of one of the Disney Town flavours in hand. But instead of sitting down again, he gestured for Roxas to get up.

"I had an idea," he said, holding out the ice cream and a spoon. "You're having trouble with Command Styles, right?"

Roxas frowned at the reminder. "What of it?"

"Try this," Ven grinned. He knew something Roxas didn't, clearly.

Uncertain what ice cream had to do with Command Styles, he hesitantly reached out and took a scoop. It was Honeybunny.

"Go on," Ven encouraged when Roxas eyed him suspiciously.

It just tasted like ice cream. The same stuff he'd given them for their birthday. Except-

"Whoa!" Roxas gasped. His whole body was glowing – and this time it wasn't his doing. There was a steady thrum of energy under his skin. Kingdom Key appeared in his non-spoon wielding hand without being called on. "What?"

"Disney Town ice cream can activate Command Styles without fulfilling the criteria," Ven explained. "I figured if you could experience what it felt like when activated, you'd have an easier time the long way."

"The ice cream you gave us never did this though?"

Ven shrugged. "We had it made special so you could just enjoy it as ice cream." He summoned Wayward Wind, sliding into a ready stance. "Wanna try it out?"

* * *

Roxas had been gone when Xion woke the following morning. Isa and Axel were still there, though, all three of them tangled together. She'd slept well – the softness of the bed had probably helped a lot – and she was content to lie there with them a while longer. Except that she really needed to use the bathroom.

She ran into Roxas in the dining room afterwards. Only he, Aqua, and Ven were there. Roxas and Ven looked like they hadn't gotten any sleep.

Xion took the empty seat beside him and set down her bowl of oatmeal. "Good morning."

Roxas rubbed at his eyes. "Hey."

"Do you want an elixir?" she pulled one out of her pocket. "You look tired."

"I've got some, but thanks," he assured her. He tapped his last few bites of toast against his plate.

Xion pretended not to notice him glancing at her out the corner of his eyes, busying herself with her own breakfast.

"Hey, Xion?" he hedged, voice low enough that Aqua and Ven wouldn't hear them. "Can I ask you something?"

He wasn't looking at her anymore, focused intently on his plate.

"Sure."

"Does sharing a face with Kairi and Naminé ever bother you?"

It wasn't what she'd expected him to ask, not that she'd known what she'd expected. Her attention darted briefly to Ven. She knew sharing a face bothered him.

"Yes," she admitted just as quietly. "Sometimes I wonder... which bits are me and which bits are someone else."

This would normally be where he protested. Instead all he did was hum knowingly. There was something very thoughtful about his expression. Thoughtful and understanding. He took her hand and dropped something small into her palm.

"Did you know that sometimes normal people are born identical?" he mused, letting his hand fall back into his lap. "They look exactly the same and because they grow up together sometimes they end up liking the same things, or having similar personalities. But no one ever doubts that they're different people."

Xion stared down at the object left in her palm. It was a keychain – a very familiar one. "Aubade."

"Maybe we're a bit like that. The same but different." He stood, pushing away from the table, and called on his Kingdom Key.

She watched in silence as he unclipped its keychain and replaced it with a different one. Kingdom Key's shape changed into another familiar form. Rejection of Fate.

He gave her a small smile. "We might share Kingdom Key with Sora as base forms, but where we go from there? That's _us_ , not him."

She wondered what had happened; she'd never seen him so comfortable with himself.

"Yeah," she curled her fingers around Aubade's keychain. Maybe she was a bit like that too.

Old building blocks, new tower.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So hey what's everyone's favourite Keyblade? Mine's True Light's Flight


	9. Chapter 9

"The rules are simple," Aqua said to the eight people lined up in front of her. "Corridors, items, summons, memory altering, Keyblade Gliders, armour, gummiphones, murder, and using your Keyblades to lock or unlock things are all prohibited. You can move freely through both the castle and the grounds, with the exception of the bedrooms and the kitchen. Please do not destroy anything. And most importantly, do not touch Master's Defender. Anyone who breaks this last rule will answer to me."

Lea didn't know what Master's Defender was, but he wasn't even going to _look_ at it.

"Each team has a flag," Terra took over. "Your goal is to steal the other team's flag, and return it to your own base. Whichever team successfully retrieves the other team's flag first wins. If your armband is taken, you're 'out'."

Lea's team all had blue armbands. He was pretty sure he had an unfair advantage, given that the others were all pint sized and would have a hard time even reaching his.

"Your flags have already been set up and you have five minutes to head to your bases and form a plan. Your time starts now!"

Lea followed after his tiny teammates as they booked it for the Castle. Their flag had been tied to the raised part of the armrest on the middle throne of the throne room they'd spent the previous day training in. The four of them crowded around it in a huddle, hyperaware of how short five minutes was.

"So what's the plan?" Kairi asked.

They didn't know where the enemy base was; Aqua had only told them where to find theirs. Given the direction they'd headed when they'd split into two groups, though, it was safe to presume it was outside somewhere.

"We'll have to be really careful," Sora said. "At least two people should stay to protect the flag."

Lea snorted. "Isa said things got so out of hand yesterday that Roxas and Riku went off-world to duke it out." The only person he knew Roxas was going to willingly work with was Naminé. "They're gonna be so dysfunctional we'll be able to waltz right up and grab their flag while they're still bickering."

"Or," Xion countered, "that just means they'll split up."

"Even easier." They could pick them off one-by-one.

"The question is, who do we think they'll leave to defend the flag?" Kairi tapped her chin.

"Naminé," Lea said. "She's got the least experience with the Keyblade, so they won't want to risk her running into one of us."

"Right. And knowing the other three, they'll just come charging in here faster than we can get to her."

This was going to be a walk in the park.

"We should have three people here then," Sora said. "And one person can go and get the flag."

"I'll handle Naminé," Lea grinned. Which left the other three on defence.

There were no protests and when the five minutes drew to an end, they waited another few before they split up, giving the other team time to do the same. Lea headed straight for the forecourt. He didn't run into anyone on the way out, and the courtyard was also empty, with the exception of Terra, Aqua, and Isa leaning against the wall. Wherever Roxas, Ven, and Riku were, they weren't close yet.

Lea walked down the mountain path with Flame Liberator slung over his shoulder. If anyone except Naminé was still around, he'd hear them before he saw them, but it was best to stay cautious just in case. He knew better than to underestimate the other three. All of them were heavy hitters.

A large boulder at the base of the path afforded him enough cover to take a peek at what he was getting himself into. The red enemy flag was tied to one of the rings in the training ground. Standing in front of it was only one person. Kairi had been right.

Except it wasn't Naminé.

"Hey," Roxas said as Lea stepped into the field. "Should've guessed they'd send you first."

"First?" Lea raised a brow, letting himself relax. They both knew they wouldn't fight each other. He could take his time; when he went for the flag, at most he'd just have to outrun him.

"You left the other three to defend your flag, right?" he smiled. There was something off about it that made Lea uncomfortable. "Makes sense to send you. You're experienced at sneaking around."

Lea was no longer relaxed. Something about him was off.

"Wait a minute." The realisation dawned on him, even as common sense protested that there was no way this could possibly be happening. " _Ven?_ "

"Huh, you were right," Riku's voice said from behind. Lea whirled around to find him and Roxas emerging from where they must have been hanging behind the wall. Roxas was wearing Ven's clothes, right down to the armour plating. "Took him less than a minute to realise."

All three of them were armed – Roxas and Ven going so far as to be using each other's Keyblades. Lea was surrounded.

"Because we're friends," Roxas grinned, "we'll give you a chance to surrender."

Three on one. Lea had faced worse odds. Add to that the knowledge that Roxas wouldn't be able to do more than support, and that while Riku and Ven and maybe Ven and Roxas would work together, Riku and Roxas was a no go, and Lea was fairly confident he could take them.

He gave Flame Liberator a threatening twirl. "Bring it."

Ven moved first, Kingdom Key now in his signature backhanded grip. Lea braced for an attack, but instead of swinging at him, Ven slid around him – and oh god that was _reversal, what was happening._ Roxas and Riku made use of the distraction, Riku freezing his legs in place with blizzard and Roxas aiming the light glinting off the armour plating on his shoulder right into his eyes, forcing him to shield them.

When the dazzle faded, Ven and Riku had their Keyblades pointed at him.

 _I'm in a horror movie_ , Lea thought. They were _working together_.

"Sleep!"

And Lea slept.

* * *

"Axel's been gone a while."

He had. A lot longer than Xion had expected him to be. But Axel knew how to handle himself and how to stay out of sight. She was more worried about the complete lack of sightings of the other team. They knew Team Super Friendship had their base inside the castle because they'd seen them come straight here, but so far Xion hadn't even heard anything.

"Do you think he's dead?" Kairi asked, lounging on one of the thrones.

"Murder's against the rules," Sora reminded her.

"Riku's been known to cheat."

Xion idly kicked at the dais' step. Axel was definitely not dead. "Roxas wouldn't let him."

Sora stood from where he'd been perched on the step. "Maybe one of us should go investigate."

"Like a recon mission?" Xion asked. She hadn't been on one of those for a long time.

"Sure?"

Of the three of them left, only Xion had any actual experience with sneaking around. Which was how she found herself slinking first through the forecourt (offering a brief wave to Aqua, Terra, and Isa sitting on the wall), and then down the path towards the training ground. She didn't make it all the way before she spotted a familiar head of bright red hair propped up against the rocks.

"Axel!" she raced over to him. He was out cold. Xion knew she wasn't allowed any items, but cure was still on the table. Unfortunately, it did absolutely nothing. She frowned. Well, Aqua had taught her a new support spell, so, "Esuna!"

That did something. Axel stirred, blinking up at her blearily.

"Axel, are you okay?" she asked. "What happened?"

He stared up at her in confusion, before wakefulness snapped back in full force. "Oh man. Nope. _Nope. I'm out_." He pushed himself back up to his feet faster than Xion thought was safe and started marching back up the path towards the castle. "Not dealing with that."

Xion chased after him. "What's wrong?"

Axel paused, looking over his shoulder at her. It was only then that she noticed his armband was gone. "I'm not allowed to help now, but I'll give you some advice: Run."

"Run?"

He ruffled her hair. "I'm gonna go join Isa in the forecourt. Do yourself a favour and do _not_ go down there."

This time when he left she didn't stop him, hesitating in the middle of the path. She'd found what she'd been looking for, but with Axel out they now had no idea what they were up against. Whatever had him so freaked out, it wasn't good. She was going to have to investigate further.

Xion crept further down the path, hugging the wall as much as she could in an attempt to stay unnoticed. She took cover behind the large boulder sticking out of the path and peeked out as much as she dared.

The other team's flag was hanging from one of the training rings. Roxas was sitting on the grass, leaning against the support pole.

Definitely not Naminé. And if Roxas was here, where was everyone else?

She couldn't pick a fight with Roxas. Not being able to fight each other hadn't saved Axel and she wasn't about to risk it when he'd blatantly told her to keep her distance.

Xion sprinted back to base, half paranoid that she'd run into one of the other three along the way, but the journey was eerily quiet.

Sora and Kairi were exactly where she'd left them.

"I've got bad news," she told them, slipping in through the doorway. "Axel's out."

They gaped at her.

"It gets worse. Roxas is the one guarding their flag."

Sora frowned. "What happened to Axel? If it's Roxas..."

Xion shrugged awkwardly. "I don't know. He was knocked out on the path. It took esuna to wake him up, and all he said was that I should run."

"Must've used some kind of status effect," Kairi concluded.

"What do we do?" Xion asked, sitting down cross legged in front of Sora.

Kairi sat up in her chair, a devilish smirk forming on her face. "We weren't completely wrong; they did split up."

"Yeah?" Sora tilted his head back to look up at her.

She jumped up to her feet, slinging Destiny's Embrace in a loose circle. "I have a plan."

* * *

Roxas lazily lifted his gaze from where he was pulling out grass as the sound of approaching footsteps reached him. Kairi kept her head high, not faltering. They might have guessed wrong about Naminé, but this was going to work. She had absolutely no doubts about that.

"Hey," she said, stopping a safe distance away.

"Hi," Roxas returned. His Keyblade was propped up beside him. He made no move to grab it, or to get up. "If you're here for the flag, you're gonna be in for a bad time."

She offered him her sweetest smile. "Actually, I came to talk to you."

"Me?"

"I have a... proposition for you," she said, letting her expression turn mischievous. She hadn't interacted much with Roxas before, but she knew deep down they were kindred spirits. A belief that only strengthened when he pushed himself up to his feet, grin matching hers.

"I'm listening."

"Join our team as a double agent."

He raised a brow. "You want me to betray my team?"

Kairi shrugged. It wouldn't be that hard. The only one on it he was really friends with was Naminé.

"What's in it for me?"

Ah, this was the part she knew he wouldn't resist. "We'll let you be the one to take down Riku."

That startled a laugh out of him. "Wouldn't it be faster to just take the flag?"

"Yes," she agreed. Much faster, actually, if not more dangerous. "But where's the fun in that?"

"So let me get this straight," Roxas said. "I switch sides, but don't let my team _know_ I've switched sides. I help you guys take them out, and then we celebrate a crushing victory."

Kairi held out a hand. "You in?"

He looked away in thought. "You do make a compelling argument," he tapped his chin. "But I'm sure someone already told you I beat Riku yesterday."

They had. Kairi wished she'd known so she could've watched. She loved Riku dearly, really she did, but he'd had it coming. "Don't you want to do it again? Even just to see the look on his face when he realises you're a spy?"

"Can't argue with that." He took her hand. "I'm in."

Just as she'd suspected.


	10. Chapter 10

It felt a little like a lost opportunity to not take the flag with them, but Kairi knew that destroying their opponents was the only reason Roxas had switched sides, which meant it was going to have to wait. Go big or go home. And Kairi was tired of being stuck at home.

They ran back to Team Super Friendship's base as quickly as possible. The four sitting in the forecourt looked up as they passed, and for some reason when Axel caught sight of Roxas he dropped his head into his hands and started muttering under his breath. Kairi decided not to think too hard on it.

"Plan successful!" Kairi grinned, slamming open the throne room door.

Xion and Sora stared at Roxas with troubled expressions, despite having already been filled in on what she'd been planning. Kairi was a little offended that they'd so obviously doubted her persuasive abilities.

"Something doesn't feel right," Sora said.

"Have your moral crisis later," Kairi told him, dragging Roxas over to the dais. "Roxas, give us the deets."

"I got stuck guarding the flag," he crossed his arms. "We couldn't agree on a plan, so they all kind of just ran off. We didn't know where in the castle your base was, so they probably split up to search."

It wasn't all that much to go on, but it was better than what they'd had. And the confirmation that they would only have to face one of them at a time was helpful.

"Okay," Kairi hit her palm with a fist. "We should make the most of our element of surprise while we've got it. Roxas, do you think you can track down Ven and lure him back here?"

"Sure," he shrugged. "But he probably won't believe that I found your base on my own and then _didn't_ just charge in." He nudged Xion with an elbow. "Wanna pretend to be my prisoner?"

Xion shared an uneasy glance with Sora. Kairi didn't know what they were so upset about. It wasn't a secret how much Roxas had it out for Riku. And had he ever actually talked to Ven? There were no feelings lost there. If they ran into Naminé, Kairi bet she could convert her, too. Who wouldn't want to be on Team Super Friendship?

"Xion, you go with Roxas," Kairi decided. "Sora and I will hide behind the thrones so it looks like no one's here. Then, when Ven turns up, we jump him!"

Xion bit her lip. "Okay."

* * *

There was something... wrong. Xion couldn't quite pick what it was, but there was definitely something. Roxas was silent as he walked alongside her, the two of them following his connection straight to Ven and being careful to keep an eye out for the other two.

"Did you really sell out Naminé so you could beat up Riku?" she asked as they stepped out into the entry hall.

"I'd never sell out Naminé," he said. "I'm only following along with Kairi's plan because it sounded fun. As long as she stays hidden, Naminé will be fine." Rejection of Fate suddenly appeared in his hand. "He's coming," Roxas whispered. "Get ready."

The front entrance creaked open and Ven stuck his head in through the gap. His eyes widened when he spotted Xion being marched forward at Keyblade point.

"Hey," Roxas called. "Found a prisoner."

Ven hurried over to join them. He eyed Xion's armband. "Couldn't take her out, huh? Hi, Xion."

"Hello," Xion said. At least she didn't have to pretend to be uncomfortable. Something was still niggling in the back of her mind.

"I know where Team Super Friendship's base is," Roxas said.

Xion spun to face him, surprised. That wasn't the plan. She was supposed to lead them there so they wouldn't have a reason to take her out. "Roxas-"

"Sorry, Xion," Roxas said. "Stop."

Xion's whole body froze. No matter how much she tried to move, she was petrified. And by the time anyone came to find her, it'd be too late. Roxas tugged off her armband. She was out.

"They fell for it, huh?" Ven said.

"Sora and Xion suspected something, I think, but Kairi has no idea."

"So we just have to find a way to lure Sora out then." He held up a hand and Xion watched in absolute amazement as Roxas returned the high-five. "Good job, Ven."

Wait.

Wait, _what_?

It clicked. The thing that had been bugging her wasn't that Roxas had switched sides so easily. It was that he _wasn't Roxas_. They'd switched clothes and Keyblades. And she'd fallen for it. Sora and Kairi had fallen for it too. And it was too late for her to warn them.

Now Axel's advice made sense. She wished she'd listened.

"Sorry for tricking you, Xion. I'll make it up to you," Roxas – the real Roxas – told her with a sad smile.

She wanted to hit him, but by the time stop wore off they were both gone.

* * *

Ven slipped back inside the throne room, making a show of being distressed. There was no sign of Kairi or Sora, which meant they were probably still hiding.

"Hey, uh, change of plans," he called out to them, taking a peek through the door into the hallway. There was, of course, no one there. Roxas had gone back to their flag to find Riku and fill him in. And Naminé was exactly where she was supposed to be.

The two of them emerged from their hiding place and it didn't escape either of their notices that he was alone.

"Where's Xion?" Sora asked.

"Ven figured out that I'd switched sides," he told them, hurrying over. "He caught us by surprise. I managed to take him out, but not before he got Xion."

"Damn," Kairi huffed. "Well, we've still got three people. And now we only have to worry about Riku and Naminé."

Sora was staring at him. Ven very deliberately kept his attention fixed on Kairi.

"I don't know where Riku is, and I don't have any sort of connection with him I can follow." He paused. "But I can trace Naminé."

"I'll go with you," Sora announced. Perfect. "Kairi, you'd better wait here and guard the flag in case Riku shows up."

Kairi nodded. "Try to convert her if you can."

Ven gave her a thumbs up and then gestured for Sora to follow him. He'd have to be careful; he had a connection to Naminé in a similar way that he did with Roxas, but Sora did too. He'd know if they were heading in the wrong direction.

* * *

The throne room door eased open. Kairi stood to attention, ready for whoever was about to come through. It was way too soon for it to be Sora and Roxas.

Riku leisurely strolled in, offering her a smug grin.

"Hey, Kairi," he bounced Braveheart against his shoulder a couple of times. "Heard you tried to use me as a bargaining chip."

Kairi stared at him in shock. He knew. How did he know? Had Ven told him, before Roxas had taken him out? Come to think of it, how had _Ven_ known?

"The double-agent thing was unexpected. Guess it goes to show we shouldn't underestimate you." He smirked. "But you overlooked one tiny thing."

Oh this was bad. "Which is?"

"Your double agent was a triple agent."

Ven stepped through the door behind him, Wayward Wind held in a forward grip.

"Ven? You're supposed to be dead!" Kairi pointed accusingly.

"There's something else you overlooked," Ven smiled in a way that was entirely out of character. Oh no. "I'm not Ven."

"Roxas?!" They'd switched clothes? And Keyblades? They were cooperating enough to actually willingly do that?! But wait, if Roxas was here, then that meant- "Where's Sora?"

"Dead," Roxas shrugged. "Or he will be soon."

The gravity of the situation hit her. A furious scowl settled on her face and she shifted into a battle-ready stance. She might be the only one left, but she wasn't going down without one hell of a fight.

Riku and Roxas readied their Keyblades. "Suit yourself."

* * *

Things had definitely not gone to plan. She'd known that the moment Roxas had come to warn her that Team Super Friendship had 'converted' Ven as a 'double agent'. But, if anything, that had only worked to their advantage. Instead of having to wait for the other team to come to them, they were able to take a little more initiative. Naminé could be flexible.

She remained exactly where she'd been hiding for the past however long – in a little alcove close enough to the throne room that she could hear what was going on, but still out of the way enough that she wasn't overly worried about anyone finding her. According to Roxas, though, that would soon be changing. But she wasn't worried. Ven had it all under control.

"Down this way," she heard Ven say, and braced herself.

Two pairs of footsteps drew closer. Naminé pushed herself up to her feet, holding Two Become One at the ready. She, Riku, Roxas, and Ven had spent most of the night training together – apparently Roxas had decided to cooperate, at least for the rest of the weekend. Ven had taught them all the friendship commands he knew. It would certainly come in handy now.

"Vanish," she whispered and her body disappeared.

"There's no one here?" Sora asked, coming around the corner and glancing around. He couldn't see her. But it wouldn't last long. "Weird. I can definitely feel the connection."

Ven looked in the general vicinity of her face and gestured with his head towards Sora. "She must be here somewhere," he said, drawing Sora's attention in a way that left his back exposed to her.

Sorry, Sora, she thought, and hit him with sleep.

Sora crumpled, only saved from hitting his head on the floor by Ven's quick reflexes. Vanish wore off in the next second, leaving Naminé once again visible.

"Nice work," Ven propped Sora up against the wall, removing his armband.

It was ironic, in a bad way, that she'd sent him to sleep again. At least this time she wouldn't have to sacrifice two lives to wake him up.

"Just Kairi left now," he told her. "Roxas and Riku should already be in there keeping her busy. You ready?"

Naminé nodded. "Ready."

* * *

Kairi was putting up a significant fight. For someone who'd only been in training for such a short time, Roxas was impressed. Her specialty was definitely magic – especially light magic. Unfortunately for her, light magic was his specialty too, and while it was effective enough against Riku, it did very little to slow Roxas down.

Two blond heads poked through the throne room entrance. Roxas nodded to them and turned back to the fight. They needed to draw Kairi away from the dais.

Roxas aimed Wayward Wind at her. He'd managed to get the hang of Kingdom Key's shotlock thanks to Riku, but he hadn't tried it with a different Keyblade yet. The principle was the same, though.

"Riku!" he warned, and a wave of fireballs launched from Wayward Wind.

Riku jumped back out of the way, giving Kairi enough warning to catch the shotlock on her Keyblade. She rushed at him instead. Roxas braced himself. Behind her, Naminé slipped into the room and then disappeared as vanish was cast on her.

"Riku, Roxas!" Ven called, running into the fray.

They'd practiced one particular friendship command more than the others. Ven initiated the spell, and as the light pattern spread out across the floor around him, Roxas and Riku pushed away from Kairi to add their own strength.

The light generated by Trinity Limit had Kairi stumbling back, shielding her eyes. By the time she'd recovered, Naminé and the flag were gone.

* * *

A flare lit up the sky as Naminé tied Team Super Friendship's flag beside their own. The rest of her team weren't there with her, but it did nothing to dampen the smile on her face.

They'd won.


	11. Chapter 11

They reconvened in the living room. Sora and Xion sat side-by-side on one of the couches, expressions lost like they were questioning the universe and their place in it. On the adjacent couch, Lea had his head resting on Isa's lap, one hand covering his face. He'd skipped right over questioning and gone straight for crisis, but at least he'd stopped muttering about hell freezing over. Terra was still a little concerned about his mental health. The only member of Team Super Friendship that was in any way 'okay' was Kairi, but she was glaring so hard at the smug faces of her opponents that Terra would bet munny that she was already planning her revenge. She'd managed to keep her armband, at least.

Riku, Ven, Roxas, and Naminé stood together in front of the TV. Naminé was holding both flags, looking like she was struggling to fend off a grin. Roxas and Ven had changed back into their own clothes.

Aqua was still trying to work out how the kids she'd thought were so sweet and innocent had managed to absolutely destroy their opponents so thoroughly. Terra, who had checked in with them during the five minutes planning time, didn't have the heart to tell her that the entire thing had been Naminé's idea.

"I'm going to start by saying this was supposed to be a fun game," Aqua began slowly.

"It was fun," Ven said. He turned to his teammates. "You guys had fun, right?"

"I'm glad someone did," Lea groaned. He sat up just enough to eye Roxas, Ven, and Riku. "Don't get me wrong, I'm glad the three of you are getting along. I just really wish it didn't take psychological warfare to make it happen."

"Don't mistake an alliance for 'getting along'," Roxas said haughtily. "Riku and I still hate each other."

Riku turned to him. "I don't hate you."

Roxas sneered at him. "I can fix that."

"Psychological warfare aside," Aqua continued, cutting over them, "I'm impressed with how you all used what you've learned to your advantage. Still, there can only be one winning team." She turned to the team in question. "Did you ever come up with a name?"

The four of them glanced at each other.

"Team Paint Water," Riku said. Then, in the face of their confusion, "We let Naminé pick."

Naminé's smile faded just a little. "I panicked."

Fair enough.

* * *

The whole point of the weekend had been to give them a taste of what they'd be in for if any of them wanted to stay on as apprentices. Riku wasn't overly surprised by Lea and Kairi's eager acceptance when the question was finally asked, or Xion and Naminé's shy willingness to at least see where it took them. Roxas was the only one who wasn't already a Master that had declined.

"Not interested in being a Master?" Riku asked him as they were all preparing to return to their own worlds.

Roxas smiled at him in a way that was not at all friendly. "I don't need to be a Master to beat you."

The truce was over, then. It'd been kind of nice while it lasted.

"That," he continued, quietly, almost like an afterthought, "and I don't want to feel like I'm copying anyone."

"Becoming a Master wouldn't mean you were copying anyone," Riku told him. Did he really struggle with his identity that much?

Roxas hummed, but didn't comment. It was the most civil conversation they'd ever had, come to think of it.

"You know, if you change your mind but don't want to train here with Ven, I'm open to trying to teach you what I know." It was a selfish offer in exactly the way Roxas had accused him of, but Roxas didn't need to know that.

"And call you Master?" Roxas' lip curled. "Not in a million years."

"The offer stands."

"Roxas!" Lea called. He'd opened a Corridor, and he, Isa, and Xion were all waiting for him.

Roxas watched them for a moment, before turning back to Riku. "Hey."

"Yeah?"

"I still don't like you. And I don't think I'll ever be able to forgive you."

He'd definitely gotten that impression.

"But I think maybe I can understand why you did it." He shoved his hands into his pockets almost self-consciously and looked over to Sora and Ven across the forecourt. "Funny how we look nothing alike, but sometimes I feel like I can relate to you more than I can to them."

"Roxas..."

Roxas punched him in the gut and Riku was forced to double over, winded.

"Tell anyone I said that and you won't live to regret it."

"Roxas!" Xion gasped. "Riku, are you okay?!"

Riku waved off her concern. He'd had worse. "Fair enough," he managed. "But next time you punch me, I'm not gonna let guilt stop me from retaliating."

Roxas' responding grin as he walked over to join his friends was more of a threat than a challenge. But Riku was done walking on egg shells around him.

He made his way over to where Sora and Kairi were still saying their goodbyes. From what he'd overheard, the plan was for the new students to come for a few hours a day outside their other commitments, instead of staying on full-time like Ven did. Which was just as well, or they'd probably see even less of Kairi than they had previously.

"Ready to go?" Kairi asked him.

"Yeah."

"Wait, before you do there was something I wanted to ask you, Riku," Terra stepped forward. "Do you think you'd be willing to take on a student?"

Riku blinked up at him, surprised. "You want me to take on an apprentice?" He'd offered to train Roxas, but it was one thing to offer it to a non-Master, and another entirely to have a Master ask him to. "Who?"

"Me, actually," he said sheepishly. Aqua nodded encouragingly. "I was hoping you'd teach me how to control the darkness."

"I... Sure." He wasn't sure he was really qualified for it, given his track record, but he'd never deny help to anyone asking for it.

Sora had taught him better than that.

"You can come with me and Naminé after school tomorrow," Kairi looped her arm through his. He didn't like the look on her face. She was planning something.

He cast a worried glance over at Naminé and Sora. Naminé was clueless it seemed. Sora, on the other hand, was apologetic, which meant he already knew what he was in for and wasn't going to stop her.

Oh no.


End file.
